Cheap Gas for Memorial Day Travelers

Memorial Day travelers will get welcome relief at the pump this weekend as gas prices dropped by nearly a dime over the past week, according to the Automobile Club of Southern California's Weekend Gas Watch.

The average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in the Los Angeles area as of Thursday at noon was $4.093 per gallon—9.6 cents lower than last week and 16 cents lower than last month, the Automobile Club reported. The price is still $1.05 higher than it was last year.

"The Auto Club is expecting that 84 percent of Southern California travelers, or 2.2 million people, will drive to their holiday destinations this weekend, so the gas price drops are coming at a good time," said Auto Club spokesman Jeffrey Spring. "Overall, 2.62 million Southern Californians are expected to travel this weekend—a very slight increase of two-tenths of one percent from last year."

For those who plan to fill up before they head out on vacation, here are some of the stations selling relatively inexpensive gas in the Redondo Beach area. Prices are from GasBuddy.com and user-reported within the past 24 hours.

• Thrifty, 4925 Torrance Blvd., Torrance
  Regular: $3.879
  Premium: $4.059
• 
  Regular: $3.899
  Premium: $4.099
• Thrifty, 16515 Hawthorne Blvd., Lawndale
  Regular: $3.969
  Premium: $4.269
• 76, 5404 W. 190th St., Torrance
  Regular: $3.999 (cash price)

  Premium: $4.239 (cash price)
• Arco, 1131 Pacific Coast Highway, Hermosa Beach
  Regular: $3.999
  Premium: $4.139
• 
  Regular: $4.059
  Premium: $4.259
• 
  Regular: $4.059
  Premium: $4.259

Though Los Angeles area gas prices may still seem high, they're still less than the average prices in Ventura, Bakersfield and the Central Coast, which are averaging $4.101, $4.117 and $4.139, respectively. The lowest average gas price in Southern California—$4.046 per gallon—is in the Riverside-San Bernardino area.