For many, it’s the last hurrah.
The Labor Day weekend marks the unofficial end of the summer travel season.
And many are making the most of it.
According to AAA booking data, overall domestic travel over Labor Day weekend is up 9% compared with last year, while the cost to travel domestically is down 2%.
Gas prices
In its annual Labor Day travel forecast, GasBuddy predicts the national average price of gas will continue its recent downward trend, falling to $3.27 per gallon on Labor Day, the lowest Labor Day price since 2021.
At $3.27, that would be 50 cents per gallon, or 13%, below last year’s $3.77, saving Americans a combined $750 million during the Friday-through-Monday travel period, officials said in a release.
The national average peaked at $3.69 per gallon in mid-April, and prices have been easing since, with lower demand helping to bring the price of gas down.
“It’s been a great summer for motorists to hit the road with gas prices generally lower than last year,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. “But heading into Labor Day, the year-on-year gap has grown substantially thanks to few refinery outages or heat waves impacting refineries this month.
“Hurricane season has also been quiet so far. With no threats to major gasoline and diesel producing refineries, it’s looking more and more likely that we may avoid a late summer price spike. While many Americans may wish summer could last forever, the good news is we’re seeing perhaps the best opportunity in years for the national average to fall below $3 per gallon.
“As we get closer to Thanksgiving, we should see tens of thousands of stations ultimately fall back below that level, all thanks to falling seasonal demand and cheaper winter gasoline, which is right around the corner.”
Gas stations in most states will begin switching to winter blend gas on Sept. 16, which likely will help accelerate the decline in gas prices, officials said.
Average prices as of Wednesday according to AAA follow:
• Pennsylvania: $3.50
• Berks County: $3.43
• Chester County: $3.37
• Delaware County: $3.39
• Lehigh County: $3.40
• Montgomery County: $3.37
• Schuylkill County: $3.38
Travel times
INRIX, a provider of transportation data and insights, advises motorists to avoid the afternoon and early evening hours of Thursday and Friday when traffic congestion will be the worst.
Drivers should hit the road in the morning unless they’re leaving on Saturday, when the best time to travel by car is in the afternoon. Travelers on Sunday and Labor Day should leave as early as possible to avoid heavy afternoon traffic.
“Drivers should expect the most severe traffic jams before the holiday weekend as commuters mix with travelers,” Bob Pishue, transportation analyst at INRIX, said in a release. “Monitoring traffic apps, local news stations, and 511 traveler information services may help drivers navigate around congestion and reduce driver frustration this Labor Day.”
The breakdown for traveling:
• Thursday: Worst between 1 and 7:30 p.m., best before 11 a.m.
• Friday: Worst between 2 and 6 p.m., best before noon and after 7 p.m.
• Saturday: Worst between 8 and 11 a.m., best after noon.
• Sunday: Worst between 2 and 8 p.m., best before noon.
• Monday: Worst between 11 a.m. and 8 p.m., best before 10 a.m.
• Tuesday: Worst between 8 a.m. and noon, best after 1 p.m.
PA Turnpike
Pennsylvania Turnpike officials estimate 2.9 million motorists will be traveling on the highway between Thursday and Monday. The projection is slightly above last year’s total traffic level of 2.84 million motorists and about even with 2019’s record travel level of 2.89 million motorists.
Officials provided expected daily traffic counts:
• Thursday: 670,000
• Friday: 720,000
• Saturday: 540,000
• Sunday: 480,000
• Monday: 480,000
Officials said there will be an increased number of safety patrol teams on the turnpike to help travelers in need of assistance.
All road construction and maintenance projects will be suspended beginning Thursday at 3 p.m. until Monday 2 at 11 p.m. to keep lanes open and minimize congestion.
State police will have increased patrols over the holiday weekend.
Weather
After sweltering heat and humidity Wednesday, conditions are forecast to become a little more tolerable through the holiday, according to AccuWeather:
• Thursday: Cooler but humid with times of clouds and sun; a thunderstorm in spots in the afternoon; high, 81; low, 66.
• Friday: Mostly cloudy and comfortable; high, 75; low, 67.
• Saturday: Mostly cloudy, humid and warmer with a couple of showers and a thunderstorm, mainly later; high, 83; low 69.
• Sunday: Very warm and humid with clouds and sun; high 87; low 64.
• Monday: Partly sunny and not as warm, lower humidity; high 78; low 54.
• Tuesday: Sun, high clouds; high, 74, low; 53.
Source: Berkshire mont
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