AAA: Low gas prices expected to fuel Memorial Day weekend travel

A TOTAL OF 38 million travelers are expected to travel Memorial Day weekend, according to AAA Northeast. / COURTESY AAA NORTHEAST
A TOTAL OF 38 million travelers are expected to travel Memorial Day weekend, according to AAA Northeast. / COURTESY AAA NORTHEAST

PROVIDENCE – More than 1.7 million New Englanders, the most since 2005, are expected to travel during Memorial Day weekend, according to AAA Northeast.
Most of the New England travelers – 1,569,000 – are expected to travel by car, AAA said. The lowest gasoline prices in a decade are fueling travel, AAA said. The number of New England travelers is expected to increase by approximately 200,000 this year.

In addition, more than 38 million Americans nationwide are expected to travel during the Memorial Day weekend holiday, marking the second-highest Memorial Day travel on record and the most since 2005, according to AAA Northeast.

“Americans are eagerly awaiting the start of summer and are ready to travel in numbers not seen in more than a decade,” Lloyd Albert, AAA Northeast senior vice president of public and government affairs, said in a statement. “The great American road trip is officially back thanks to low gas prices, and millions of people from coast to coast are ready to kick off summer with a Memorial Day getaway.”

AAA said approximately 700,000 more people will travel nationwide during the Memorial Day travel period from May 26 to 30 compared with last year.

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AAA estimates that Americans have saved $18 billion on gas so far this year compared with the same period in 2015.

AAA said nearly 34 million holiday travelers, 89 percent, will drive to their Memorial Day destinations, an increase of 2.1 percent over last year as a result of lower gas prices. Air travel is expected to rise 1.6 percent over last year, with 2.6 million Americans traveling by plane. Travel by other modes of transportation, including cruises, trains and buses, will fall 2.3 percent to 1.6 million travelers.

AAA also expects to rescue more than 350,000 motorists during the Memorial Day holiday travel period for dead batteries, lockouts and flat tires. AAA recommends motorists check the condition of their battery and tires before a road trip.
The auto club also released the top 10 destinations for Memorial Day weekend, based on AAA.com and AAA travel agency sales:

  • Orlando
  • Myrtle Beach
  • Washington, D.C.
  • New York
  • Miami
  • San Francisco
  • Boston
  • Honolulu
  • Los Angeles
  • South Padre Island, Texas

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