For Jake Crawford of Norton, filling up his Honda at a Gulf station Monday, the good news comes just in time.

Massachusetts gasoline prices fell 10 cents a gallon during the past week to their lowest level since April -- just in time for Labor Day travel.

`` I'm planning to drive to Montreal next week, but I probably wouldn't have if gas prices had stayed higher,'' Crawford said. `` I won't save a lot on every tank full, but it adds up. I'll probably save a tank of gas on the trip.''

The average price of a gallon of self service unleaded fuel averaged $2.86 per gallon last week, according to a survey by AAA Southern New England, a dime lower than the previous week. A year ago the price of a gallon of gas averaged $2.61.

Not every motorist was enthused about suddenly lower prices, which ranged as low as $2.77 in the Attleboro area Monday. `` I'm not planning to do any traveling,'' said Crystal Fleming of Attleboro, filling up at a full-service station on Pleasant Street. `` The price will probably be back up again next week.''

AAA said falling gas prices probably would have little effect on holiday travel, predicting that 35.2 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more from home during the holiday.

That's a 1.2 percent increase, less than the 2 percent to 3 percent annual growth of recent years, according to AAA Executive Vice President Bob Murray.

Murray said many Americans appear to have reallocated some of their resources to ensure that they would be able to continue with their holiday plans, which increasingly have been affected by energy costs.

`` One of the hardest things for Americans to give up is vacations,'' he said.

Vacation travel during the July 4 holiday increased by a small amount despite higher gasoline costs.