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SALT LAKE CITY — This year’s July 4th weekend getaway could be a record breaker.
AAA projects that 50.7 million Americans will travel at least 50 miles from home during the Fourth of July weekend, potentially setting new records for road and air travel. If the prediction is true, That’s a 3.7 percent increase from the pre-Covid-19 outbreak in 2019 and a 4.3 percent increase from last year’s final tally.
Some of these are because July 4 falls on a Tuesday this year and the calculation is based on the five days between Friday and Tuesday. But Brian Ng, AAA Utah’s senior vice president of membership and travel marketing, says travel is also in high demand right now.
“Despite limited inventory and airfares up 50% from last year, consumers are choosing not to compromise their travel plans. This holiday weekend, with a high influx of travelers, it’s important to take advantage of available resources to get the most out of their trip,” he said in a statement.
Why Utah expects ‘minor’ impacts
4.17 million are expected to take to the skies between Friday and Tuesday, according to AAA’s forecast. However, Salt Lake City International Airport is not expecting long lines at Transportation Security Administration checkpoints because of the 4th of July weekend.
Airport spokeswoman Nancy Vollmer told KSL.com, “Because the holiday falls on a Tuesday, we’re seeing passenger numbers spread out over the next few days rather than one big day of travel.”
Thursday and Friday are the busiest days, though not at “record-breaking” volumes, she added.
That’s why Utah Department of Transportation engineers don’t expect as many delays as other recent holiday weekends, even though car travel is expected to account for 85% of all holiday trips this year.
UDOT spokesman John Gleason said this is expected to “split up” traffic over several days. People may go out on Thursday or Friday nights and return on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday.
“We’re a little lucky, I think, with the venue,” he said on KSL NewsRadio’s “Dave and Dujanovic” Thursday. “What this means is that this traffic is actually spread over four or five days, and so we don’t expect any major delays.”
The agency is still projecting delays of up to 10 minutes on northbound I-15 in Davis County from 2 p.m. to 1 a.m. and in Salt Lake County from 3 p.m. to 1 a.m., as well as on southbound I-15 near Nephi from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. hour
The agency plans to stop all construction and reopen as many lines as possible within five days; However, I-15 in Nephi will be reduced to one lane in each direction starting Wednesday, with lanes diverted on I-15 in Centerville at Parrish Lane and 200 West in Farmington for various projects.
Lanes on I-80 will be changed between 1300 East and 2300 East and split between I-215 between 3300 South and 4500 South in Salt Lake County due to another project. Eastbound US 40 will be reduced to one lane near Jordanelle Reservoir as the bridge over the Provo River swings.
Utah Gas Index
Another fueling this year’s record travel forecast is gas prices.
AAA lists the national average for a gallon of gas at $3.54 a gallon, which is still high compared to historical records, AAA spokesman Andrew Gross said Thursday. But it’s about $1.30 cheaper than last year going into the holiday weekend. Because of this difference, Americans may feel inclined to travel by vehicle this time of year.
“Despite the current price increase, drivers are not reducing their journeys this winter,” he said.
The firm listed the price of a regular gallon of gasoline in Utah at about $3.97 on Thursday. A price of $5.26 per gallon arrived on July 1, 2022, during peak inflation at the time.
This time, the Wasatch Front and northern Utah join central Utah as having the cheapest average gas prices, while south-central and most of eastern Utah are the most expensive, according to AAA data released Thursday.
Where gas is the cheapest in Utah
- Juab County 3.86 dollars
- Utah County $3.90
- Sevier County $3.94
- Salt Lake County: $3.94
- Weber County: $3.94
Where gas is more expensive in Utah
- Rich County $4.39
- Wayne County: 4.30 dollars
- Beaver County: 4.24 dollars
- Garfield County: 4.22 dollars
- Piute County: 4.21 dollars
Nationally, gas is the most expensive in Washington, averaging nearly $5 per gallon. Its average is $2 per gallon more expensive than in Mississippi, which has the cheapest average heading into the holiday weekend.
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