May 20, 2019

Nearly 38 million Americans expected to clog roads over Memorial Day weekend

By Andrea Romano

May 20, 2019, 12:24:58 PM EDT

If you’re planning on taking a trip this Memorial Day weekend, be prepared for lots of crowds.

According to a statment by AAA, nearly 43 million Americans will be taking a Memorial Day weekend getaway this year, an increase of 3.6 percent, or about 1.5 million people.

AAA forecasts that 3.25 million people (an increase of 4.8 percent compared to last year) will be traveling by plane, 1.9 million passengers (an increase of 3.8 percent) will be traveling by bus, train or cruise ship, and a whopping 37.6 million (a 3.5 percent increase) will be traveling by car.

(Photo/Anne Cusack/Getty Images)

So much road travel can come with risks, and AAA predicts it will be rescuing 353,000 road trippers this Memorial Day weekend thanks to dead batteries, flat tires, and so on.

However, though average gas prices this year have risen over 30 cents, amounting close to $3 per gallon (or more, depending on which part of the country you’re in), this doesn’t seem to dampen anyone’s travel plans. In fact, global transportation analytics company INRIX predicts travel delays for anyone taking a road trip could reach up to two or three times longer than usual, depending on which metro area you’re traveling from.

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