AAA: Nearly 106,000 Delawareans ready for a Memorial Day trip

According to AAA’s first travel forecast of the summer, nearly 106,000 Delaware residents are projected to travel over Memorial Day, representing a 2.1 percent increase over last year.

Kicking off the summer driving season, more than 95,000 Delaware travelers (or 90 percent of all local travelers) will drive to their destinations. The Memorial Day holiday travel period is defined as Thursday, May 26 to Monday, May 30.

2016 Projected Memorial Day Holiday Travelers

Delaware

                                  
                                   *U.S. Census Bureau/HIS Global Insight

National

                                     
                                     *U.S. Census Bureau/HIS Global Insight

“After weeks of seesaw temperatures and a long stretch of rainy weather, Delaware residents are looking forward to beginning the summer season,” said Jim Lardear, director of public and government affairs for AAA Mid-Atlantic. “Despite recent increases, lower gas prices have undoubtedly fueled the desire to travel. AAA estimates that Americans have saved more than $18 billion on gas so far this year compared to the same period in 2015, and it’s expected that most U.S. drivers will pay the lowest Memorial Day gas prices since 2005.”

More than 95,000 Delawareans – or 90 percent of local holiday travelers – plan to drive to their destination. This is a 2.3 percent increase over last year. Today’s (May 24) gas price average in Delaware is $2.24, compared to $2.62 on this same date last year.

About 7,500 Delaware travelers plan to fly to their Memorial Day destination, representing a 2.1 percent increase from last year.

Last Memorial Day weekend (May 21 – May 25), AAA helped more than 24,600 stranded motorists in the Mid-Atlantic territory with 1,073 of those in Delaware alone. The most common calls for service were tows, battery and tire issues. AAA recommends having the vehicle you plan to travel in checked out by a trusted mechanic before hitting the road.

Nationwide, AAA Travel projects 38 million Americans will journey 50 miles or more from home during the Memorial Day holiday weekend, a 1.9 percent increase last year and the second highest travel volume on record. Kicking off the summer driving season, 33.9 million travelers will be driving to their destination.