DEARBORN, Mich. -- Michigan's population is about 9.89 million, which means about 15 percent of us, or 1.5 million, will travel more than 50 miles during this Thanksgiving weekend, says AAA of Michigan. Nationwide, the number of people traveling is expected to be the highest since 2007.
Gas prices could be one reason. AAA of Michigan figures current gas prices are the lowest since 2008. Prices on GasBuddy.com, where drivers report gas prices they see, were reported Wednesday morning as low as $1.57 for a gallon of regular unleaded.
The number of traveling Michiganders this year is expected to increase by one percent over 2014. Of the 1.5 million travelers, 1.3 million will take the highway and a bit more than 100,000 will fly. Nationally, some 46.6 million will be on the roads, and 3.6 million will take to the air.
Thanksgiving Day is actually a busier highway travel day than the day before, says the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. But Wednesday is the busiest day for traveling by air, train, and bus.
The bureau says that 91 percent of holiday travelers do so by personal vehicle, and half of those people do all their traveling in one day and don't stay overnight.
