Road Watch Col. For 11-22,
AAA estimates that 38.4 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more away from home over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend – a 1.4 percent increase over last year.
About 33.2 million of holiday travelers plan to go by car – an increase of 2.1 percent.
The number of air travelers is expected to be 2.3 million – a decline of 6.7 percent.
The number of those traveling by other means, including trains, buses and multiple modes of transportation is expected to be 2.9 million – an increase of 1.2 percent.
“Although far too many Americans remain unemployed or under financial stress, AAA’s projected increase in Thanksgiving travel is another hopeful sign that economic conditions are stabilizing and improving in some areas,” said AAA Mid-Atlantic spokeswoman Ela Voluck.
Last year, Thanksgiving travel dropped a whopping 25 percent in the wake of the ongoing housing and financial crisis. This year’s expected increase in travel reflects improvied consumer confidence from one year ago, better financial market performance and a growing sense among many consumers that the worst of the global economic crisis is behind us.
This year’s decrease in air travel continues a decade-long trend in which air travel as a percentage of total Thanksgiving travel has declined substantially.
Since 2000, the number of Americans traveling by air during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend has dropped an astounding 62 percent.
While much of this decrease can be attributed to ongoing economic difficulties, the air travel experience itself has undergone a substantial change since the 1990s with stricter airport security, more frequent delays, reduced capacity, added surcharges and fees, all attributing to the decline.
Despite increases in gasoline prices the past month, most people will not change their decision to fly versus drive since seat availability becomes more limited and airline ticket prices increase as the holiday approaches. Gas prices are about 10-20 cents higher than a month ago.
The lowest average published airfares are expected to decrease four percent, to an average of $170 per round-trip ticket. This decrease is comparing airfares during just the week of Thanksgiving. Airfares as a whole have risen steadily since August.
Thanksgiving travelers will journey an average of 815 miles round-trip. More than one-third, 37 percent, of travelers will travel 250 miles or less round-trip.
About a quarter of weekend travelers will log between 251 and 700 miles.
More than 38 percent will travel more than 700 miles round-trip.
Thanksgiving travelers are expected to spend about $718 per household, with 32 percent for transportation, 21 percent for accommodations and 21 percent on food and beverages.
WORST HOLIDAY FOR CRASHES
The Thanksgiving holiday period resulted in the most crashes of any holiday last year, PennDOT said. There were more than 5,300 crashes and 53 fatalities during that span, which includes the weekends before and after the holiday.
With millions of motorists planning to travel for Thanksgiving, PennDOT kicked off its Operation Safe Holiday campaign. State police and hundreds of municipal police departments will work with PennDOT to increase traffic safety enforcement from now until the New Year’s holiday weekend.
The operation will include sobriety checkpoints, roving patrols and regular traffic safety patrols to focus on impaired, aggressive and unbuckled motorists. More than 250 drivers were cited for driving under the influence during the operation’s enforcement last year.
“This weekend is the start of one of the busiest times of year on our highways,” said PennDOT Secretary Allen Biehler.
PennDOT reminds drivers to make sure they are well rested and alert, or rotate drivers and take frequent breaks. Weather and road conditions can deteriorate quickly at this time of year as winter approaches.
DRIVER LICENSE CENTERS CLOSED
All Pennsylvania driver license and photo centers will be closed Thursday and Friday for the Thanksgiving holiday, PennDOT said. Customers may still obtain driver and vehicle products and services online at its Web site, www.dmv.state.pa.us.
BUMPS & THUMPS
It’s bad enough many suburbanites – and those inside the city, too – are discouraged from shopping in Center City Philadelphia because of the parking meter situation and a higher sales tax -- and now City Council wants to have mandatory bicycle registration.
The suggestion that really blows my mind is they want to impose this on teens, too – some of whom can’t even afford a new bike, alone a license. It shouldn’t have taken the recent deaths of two pedestrians by two wheelers to spark this council action.
Police should have been cracking down on reckless speeding cyclists way before this. Increasing fines for this behavior is a good idea.
Let’s face it, many irresponsible cyclists make it bad for the law-abiding cycling majority by routinely racing through stop signs and red lights in the city to the consternation of motorists who harbor animosity against bicyclists in general because of this behavior.
Sounds like another quick-fix revenue producer to me that just penalizes the bike-riding public that’s helping eliminate air pollution and promoting physical fitness.
BLUE ROUTE WORK
Motorists using I-476 between the I-76 and Pennsylvania Turnpike interchanges in Montgomery County will encounter nighttime lane closures 10 p.m.-5 a.m. tonight through Tuesday night for continuing work to prepare 3.2 miles of the Blue Route for reconstruction next year.
I-95 – PHILADELPHIA
Overnight lane closures will be in place on I-95 between the Broad Street Interchange and the Girard Point Bridge Monday and Tuesday 8 p.m.-5 a.m. for line painting and implementing a new traffic pattern change. Backups are expected.
TRAFFIC DELAYS
I-476 North – Springfield, bridge inspection, left lane closed between MacDade Boulevard and Baltimore Pike 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday.
Also, I-476 South, Springfield, bridge inspection, left lane closed between the same locations 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Tuesday.
I-95 North/South – Upper Chichester and Lower Chichester, trenching and shoulder closures between Naamans Creek Road (Route 491) and Chichester Avenue 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Tuesday.
Haverford – West Chester Pike (Route 3), PECO installation with lane restrictions between Eagle Road and Washington Avenue 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays.
U.S. Route 322 East (Conchester Highway) – Bethel and Upper Chichester, Chester Water Authority installation, lane restrictions between Creek Parkway and U.S. Route 1, 7 p.m.-6 a.m. weekdays through Dec. 11.
Baltimore Pike (Route 1) – Middletown and Chester Heights, bridge replacement between Darlington Road and Station Road, 24-hour restrictions through June 2011. Work began Oct. 12. Cost is $4.27 million; contractor is J.D. Eckman Inc.
Upper Chichester -- Naamans Creek Road (Route 491), utility installation by the Southern Delaware County Sewer Authority, closed/detoured between Meetinghouse and Larkin roads, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. through Nov. 24. Work began Sept. 28. Detour posted.
Baltimore Pike (Route 1) – Middletown, Aqua Pa. utility installation between Black Horse Lane and Valley Road 8 p.m.-6 a.m. weekdays through Nov. 30.
Baltimore Avenue – Lansdowne, East Lansdowne, Upper Darby, Aqua Pennsylvania utility installation, closed/detoured between Church Lane and Lansdowne Avenue, 9 a.m.-3 p.m., detour posted weekdays through Nov. 30.
Chester — Flower Street, ramp construction with a new traffic pattern at Fourth and Second streets, 24-hour restriction through 2011. Work began Jan. 12.
Also, Norris Street, ramp construction with lane restrictions at Front Street and Delaware Avenue, 24-hour restriction through 2011. Work began Jan. 12.
“Road Watch” appears Sundays. Only messages and mail with phone numbers will be considered. E-mail: jroman@delcotimes.com.