Auto club AAA says Colorado and surrounding mountain states will be the exception to an anticipated national decline in Independence Day travel this year.
AAA said Wednesday that it expects 2.6 million Americans in the region to travel 50 or more miles from home over the holiday weekend. That’s an increase of 1.2 percent from last year.
AAA says relatively lower unemployment will allow an uptick in travel in Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah and Arizona.
Nationally, travel in the U.S. during the July Fourth holiday weekend will decline 1.9 percent from last year as the recession and high gasoline prices keep motorists off the highways, AAA said.
The number of people traveling at least 50 miles from home will drop to 37.1 million from 37.8 million in 2008. The 2008 total was an 11 percent decline from 2007.
The airline industry, which will account for 5 percent of holiday travel, is expected to see a 4.9 percent rise in bookings over the weekend, partly because of declining airfares, AAA said in its report.
Gasoline at the pump, averaged nationwide, has risen 65 percent this year, pulled higher by a rally in crude oil. The fuel fell 0.7 cents to $2.676 a gallon, AAA said Wednesday on its website.
In Denver, gas prices increased a tenth of a cent from Tuesday to $2.508 but still were well below last year’s average of $3.92.
Last year, gasoline prices averaged about $1.30 a gallon higher during the Fourth of July weekend than current prices. But motorists may be pulling back on road trip plans in reaction to gas prices’ creep upward, said Geoff Sundstrom, an AAA spokesman.
The Los Angeles Times contributed to this report.
