VICTORVILLE — With more money in people’s wallets and gas prices dipping well below $3 a gallon, more people are likely to hit the road this Thanksgiving weekend compared to last year.
Officials from the Automobile Club of Southern California said they expect some 3.5 million Southern Californians to venture at least 50 miles from home, which would be a 3.8-percent increase over 2013.
This year’s travel volume is expected to be the highest since 2007, when 4 million travelers took trips. Statewide, more than 5.6 million travelers will be getting away for the holiday.
“As Californians see improvements in jobs and household worth this year, they are more willing to spend on travel,” AAA spokesman Jeffrey Spring said.
As for travelers from the Victor Valley, friends, family ties and warm temperatures may contribute to keeping many of them in town, or nearby.
Catherine Abbott said she’ll exchange one desert for another, as she travels some 180 miles south to Ocotillo Wells to celebrate with longtime friends.
“Not my perfect destination,” Abbott said, “but what makes it perfect is that it is simple and we get to reconnect after not seeing each other for most of the year.”
Bryan Campbell, 44, of Apple Valley said he’ll belly-up to the Thanksgiving table at home while wearing flip-flops and shorts.
“My folks live in Terre Haute, Indiana, and it’s going to be in the 30s there,” Campbell said. “They told us to save our money and stay home, because they’ll be flying here for Christmas and staying for a month to thaw out.”
Candice King, a photographer from Apple Valley, said she’ll be staying in the area and visiting multiple locations on Thanksgiving weekend.
“No way would I sit in so much traffic,” King said. “The day prior, I will be celebrating with my grandma, aunts, uncles, the immediate family and the boyfriend.”
According to the Los Angeles Times, a Washington-based technology firm, Inrix, predicts that the L.A. region will have the worst traffic in the nation on Wednesday, with trips taking 36 percent longer than average.
With gas prices in the Southland about 40 cents lower on average than a year ago, AAA said 85 percent of those traveling are expected to go by car and 11 percent by air, with most travelers planning to embark Wednesday and return Sunday.
AAA said Los Angeles International Airport is expected to be jammed. Airport officials said they expect to see 1.97 million passengers during the Thanksgiving weekend, 4.8 percent more than last year.
Barbara Little of Phelan said she plans on taking advantage of her five-day mini-vacation from her dental job to drive to Flagstaff, Arizona with her husband, Russ, as they visit family.
Page 2 of 2 - Holly Noel said she and husband, Mark Breyman, plan on setting aside all travel plans this weekend as they try to “bless those less fortunate.”
“We’ll be helping the Salvation Army from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Victorville to serve food,” Noel said. “Our kids are spread out across the country so it is too hard to get together at Thanksgiving.”
The couple’s Thanksgiving afternoon includes a quiet meal for two, dessert with a friend and watching Texas Longhorns football on TV.
Rene Ray De La Cruz may be reached at 760-951-6227, RDeLa Cruz@VVDailyPress.com or on Twitter@DP_ReneDeLaCruz.
Source: Top Stories - Google News - http://ift.tt/15vn6Wr
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