With gas prices dropping, commuter students are saving money while attending college. Recently, gas prices dropped to below two dollars.

“It benefits students a lot, especially here. We have our reward card that also offers to lower the price of gas,” said Exxon Nightshift Manager Jessica Morris. “With the price of gas decreasing, our business is picking up a lot.”

The gas prices dropping may be helping commuters with money, but it is affecting the oil industry. Louisiana’s economy is driven by oil sales.

“And thanks to lower gas prices and higher fuel standards, the typical family this year should save $750 at the pump,” said President Barack Obama in The State of the Union adress given last Tuesday. 

Current commuter students are thankful for the money they are saving in order to attend classes located on campus. 

“The gas prices being low benefits me a lot. I drive 20 miles each day to come to school,” said sophomore mechanical engineering major Nick Curry. “I like how it is saving me money.”

According to a 2013 survey by the office of Institutional Research, there are over 8,000 students who commute to campus every day. Twenty-three percent of students who commute to campus come from more than 30 miles away.

“I like the fact that gas prices are dropping because I travel a little over 20 miles a day,” said junior mechanical engineering technology major Timothy Carambat. “It helps me save money for other things.”

“Economics professor says plummeting gas prices show no short term trend” tells that crude oil is going for about $50 a barrel right now which is more than a 50 percent drop in the last six months from when the price was $115 in June. 

Some gas managers believe this is helpful not only for their customers but the economy as well. 

“It benefits the students because it reduces the cost and they have more money to spend on other things. Last summer it was twice as much, which means they have to visit gas stations twice as much,” said local gas station manager Faisal Shuja. “That means less money for them per month. I think the gas prices being lower are beneficial for the society.”

With gas prices possibly having positive and negative impacts for the student driver, these next coming months may unveil if the decrease in gas prices is saving cost in the long run.