Officials of the American Automobile Association predict more Americans will travel for this Independence Day than every before. In fact, they say record-breaking 46.9 million Americans probably will journey 50 miles or more away from home/ That’s up five percent from last year and the highest number since AAA began tracking 18 years ago.
And those who follow us know we like to travel – so we’ll be among them.
Florida Above Average
The Sunshine State will be over the average. Nearly 2.4 million Floridians will travel for during the holiday weekend. The 6.3 percent increase represents nearly 142,000 more travelers than last year. Additionally, nearly 2.1 million Floridians will take a road trip. 121,000 more Floridians will be on the road than last year; an increase of 6.2 percent.
The Independence Day holiday period will be measured from Tuesday, July 3 to Sunday, July 8. For the 39.7 million Americans planning a Fourth of July road trip. They say Tuesday will be the busiest day on the roads.
Could Take Longer
INRIX, a global transportation analytics company, predicts travel times in the most congested cities in the U.S. could be twice as long than the normal trip.
“We already are seeing a busy summer travel season and Independence Day will be no exception,” said Vicky Evans, Assistant Vice President, Travel Sales Development, AAA – The Auto Club Group. “Consumers remain confident in the economy and have additional disposable income to put toward a summer getaway.”
In addition to strong economic variables, the expected increase in travelers this year is aided by Independence Day falling on a Wednesday, giving travelers more flexibility to schedule a trip that begins with the weekend before or ends with the weekend after the holiday.
Travel Up
The survey says travel will be up, despite the fact that motorists will find the most expensive Independence Day gas prices in 3-4 years. Last year’s holiday, the average price was $2.15 in Florida and $2.23 nationwide. On July 4, 2015, gas prices averaged $2.67 in Florida and $2.77 nationwide. During the 2014 holiday, a gallon of regular averaged $3.60 in Florida and $3.66 nationwide.
The most recent poll indicates prices at the pump averaged $2.73 in Florida and $2.88 nationwide. Fortunately, fuel prices are falling. Since peaking at $2.97 Memorial Day weekend, the national average declined 9 cents.
“Declining gas prices will give Americans one more reason to celebrate this Independence Day,” said Mark Jenkins, spokesman, AAA – The Auto Club Group. “After paying some of the highest gas prices in more than three years, this break couldn’t come at a better time, as Americans prepare for the most-traveled holiday of the summer.”
The AAA’s projections are based on economic forecasting and research by IHS Markit. INRIX is the global leader in connected car services and transportation analytics. Leveraging big data and the cloud, INRIX delivers comprehensive services and solutions to help move people, cities and businesses forward. Their partners include; automakers, governments, mobile operators, developers, advertisers, as well as enterprises large and small.
