BALTIMORE — Hundreds of thousands of Marylanders will be traveling over the Memorial Day weekend, with a lot of people getting a head start on the long holiday weekend Thursday and Friday.
Despite high gas prices, AAA predicts most people will be getting away by car.
It’s been more than two years since the start of the pandemic and holiday travel continues to bounce back.
AAA projects more than 814,000 Marylanders will travel over Memorial Day weekend with 730,353 or 90% hopping in their car to get to their destination. It's about a 4% increase from last year.
Air travel also is expected to be up this holiday weekend compared to last year.
About 65,000 Marylanders will be flying somewhere this weekend.
For those who need to fill up their tanks first before hitting the road, AAA reports the average price of a gallon of regular gas in Maryland is now $4.59, just a penny below the national average.
Currently, AAA reports the average price of gas in Maryland is only two cents lower than the state's high of $4.61, reached on May 19th.
According to the website Gas Buddy, about 70% of Americans say their travel plans are affected by high gas prices.
Despite the high price of gas, Gas Buddy also reports about 60% say they will still take at least one road trip this summer. It's a huge increase from the beginning of the pandemic in 2020 when only about 30% said they would take a summer road trip.
According to AAA, the peak travel days are Thursday and Friday. The automobile club recommends drivers avoid traffic and hit the road outside the peak travel times between 1 p.m. and 8 p.m.
