Gas Prices Not Expected To Keep Americans Home Memorial Day Weekend

Yes, gasoline is over $4 a gallon in many states, but AAA says that won't keep Americans home on Memorial Day Weekend. The auto club projects 34.9 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more from home during the holiday weekend, the unofficial start to summer.

"Memorial Day travel experienced a gain of more than 14 percent in 2010, and this year we expect to add slightly to that gain due to an increase in air travel and an improvement in the overall domestic economic picture," said AAA President and CEO Robert L. Darbelnet. "Some travelers will compensate for the higher fuel costs by cutting other areas of their travel budgets."

If Americans do take to the road in large numbers next weekend, it will be a break from their present behavior. Anecdotal evidence suggests consumers have been dealing with expensive gasoline by driving less.

Slightly fewer drivers than last year

To form its projections, AAA enlisted the research firm UHS Global Insight. It projects that approximately 30.9 million people plan to drive to their destination, a small decline from the 31 million who drove last year.

In spite of gasoline prices more than a dollar per gallon higher than a year ago, automobile travel continues to be the dominant mode of transportation. Almost nine out of ten holiday travelers (88 percent) will take to the nation's roadways during theMemorial Day holiday weekend.

If present trends continue, they will pay less for gas then than they do today. The prices has been falling since the first week in May, after peaking May 5 at a national average of $3.985 a gallon.

Falling gas prices

The national average price of self-serve regular today is $3.905 a gallon, having fallen about four cents in the last two days. Ten states have an average price above $4 a gallon.

A survey of intended travelers found that six out of ten said rising gasoline prices would not impact their travel plans. Of the remaining four out of ten travelers who said rising gas prices would impact their travel plans, 70 percent will economize in other areas and the rest will take a shorter trip or travel by an alternate mode of transportation.