By David Vitrano

L’Observateur

LAPLACE – The Labor Day holiday is Monday, and that usually signals a spike in gasoline prices as families load up the car for one last hurrah before the end of summer.

Louisiana, however, has been spared the usual jump in prices.

For the week ending Aug. 30, gas prices in the state fell 3.8 cents per gallon, with an average price of $2.49 per gallon.

This is an even bigger decrease than the national market, which saw a 1.2 cents per gallon drop. The national average price of gasoline is $2.69 per gallon.

Locally, the news is even better.

In the LaPlace area, prices are hovering in the area of $2.45 per gallon with some stations offering gasoline for as little as $2.43 per gallon.

Despite the falling gas prices, they are still up compared to one year ago.

Gas prices in August 2009 were an average 4.7 cents higher in Louisiana, and the national average is 9.4 cents higher per gallon.

Prices have been steadily falling over the past month and currently stand about 6.1 cents lower than at the start of August.

This is comparable to the national average, which has decreased about 5.8 cents per gallon during the month.