COLUMBUS – A combination of wage growth and cheap gas adds up to the second-highest Memorial Day travel volume on record, with nearly 40 million Americans traveling by road, rail or air.
The 39.3 million Americans who are expected to travel at least 50 miles from home between May 25 and May 29 includes more than 1.5 million Ohioans, according to a forecast from the auto club AAA.
This marks the highest Memorial Day travel volume since 2005 and signals the start of a busy summer travel season.
“We did a survey earlier this year and found that about one-third of Americans, about 35 percent of people are planning to take a vacation this year,” Kim Schwind, spokeswoman for AAA Ohio, said in an interview for Perspective.
Overall economic growth has helped boost this year’s holiday travel. Household net worth is up, unemployment is down and consumers are more confident in the economy and allocating more money to travel, says Bill Sutherland, AAA senior vice president, Travel and Publishing.
Close to 1.4 million Ohioans, the vast majority of travelers from the state, will drive to their destinations, an increase of 2.2 percent and the sixth consecutive year of auto travel growth in Ohio.
Peak travel times for Memorial Day weekend are Friday afternoon, Monday afternoon and Monday evening.
“If you’re traveling those times, really make sure that you pack your patience and plan for it to take a little bit longer” to reach your destination, Schwind told The Columbus Dispatch
Those motorists will have to keep a sharp eye out for each other, as well as construction zones and Ohio State Highway Patrol cars.
The Ohio Department of Transportation will try to reduce their impact as much as possible over the holiday weekend, spokesman Matt Bruning said.
Last year, there were 6,041 work zone crashes, resulting in 996 injuries and 28 deaths.
Major projects in Central Ohio
I-270/SR 315/U.S. Route 23 (North Side “Mega Fix”) — Speed limit reduced to 55 mph on I-270 between US 23 and SR 315
U.S. Route 23 (South Side) — Reduced to two lanes southbound and one lane northbound on the bridge over SR 104.
U.S. Route 23 (Indianola Avenue) (North Side) — Bridge over Glen Echo will close to vehicles and pedestrians for six months
I-70/SR 310 (Licking County) — Work continues at SR 310, but all lanes will be open
Mink Street (Licking County) — Open to local traffic/residents only north of SR 161
-Source: ODOT
During Memorial Day weekend, troopers will be out on Ohio roads to encourage drivers to wear their safety belts. Officials say buckling up is the easiest way to increase safety while driving.
In 2016, there were 15 traffic deaths over the Memorial Day holiday weekend.