Wisconsin Public Radio

AAA Predicts Record-Breaking Thanksgiving Travel in Wisconsin

Nearly 1.6 million expected to drive or fly for family gatherings.

By , Wisconsin Public Radio - Nov 25th, 2024 12:57 pm
Interstate 43 freeway along the west side of downtown Milwaukee. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

Interstate 43 freeway along the west side of downtown Milwaukee. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

A record number of Wisconsinites are expected to travel for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, according to AAA. The group says nearly 1.6 million residents are expected to drive or fly this week.

Wisconsin’s last record for Thanksgiving travel recorded by AAA was set in 2019. Midwest Public Affairs Director Nick Jarmusz told WPR that holiday travel overall declined in subsequent years due to concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We saw a lot of people skip a year or two of travel because of that, and then it’s been building back ever since,” Jarmusz said. “We came very close to breaking that record last year. But this year, we did make it over the line, about a 2 percent increase over last year’s numbers, and we’re setting that new record now.”

Between Tuesday and Monday, Dec. 2, AAA projects more than 1.4 million Wisconsin residents will hit the roads for their Thanksgiving holiday festivities. Around another 115,000 are expected to fly to their family gatherings.

“It’s a reflection of what we’ve seen throughout the year with other travel holidays during the summer that we monitored, and just you know, a reflection of people’s improving confidence in the economy and their ability to spend the money necessary to take trips like these,” Jarmusz said.

As of Nov. 20, AAA reported the average price for a gallon of gas in Wisconsin was around $2.80. That’s slightly lower than an average price of around $3 per gallon during the same time in 2023.

Jarmusz said AAA encourages drivers to give themselves extra time, follow the speed limit and not drive while under the influences of drugs or alcohol.

“We just don’t want to see anyone’s holiday weekend ruined by a crash or an injury or, you know, worst case scenario, fatality,” Jarmusz said.

Listen to the WPR report

AAA predicts record-breaking Thanksgiving travel in Wisconsin was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.

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Comments

  1. Franklin Furter says:

    It’s funny, but news like this always seems so weird. Like, it has the feel of a warning for travelers (drive safely, get to the airport early, etc.), while also being framed as a competition–“…we did make it over the line…we’ve set a new record.”

    What’s notable for me is:

    — The driving prediction is based on trips 50 miles or more from home. I mean, that is probably a big part of the country, right?

    — Newsweek reports that this is the first year AAA is including the Tuesday before and the Monday after in its predictions. So…maybe that has something to do with the increase. Just speculating…

    Lastly, and I haven’t found this data point, yet, but is the car prediction based on drivers or drivers and passengers? It would be great if more people were travelling in fewer cars!

    And, alas, trains and other transit are not even included. ‘merica…

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