Millions in DC area expected to hit the highway for end-of-year holiday travel

If you are hitting the highway this holiday season – you won’t be alone! More than 2.5 million travelers in the Washington, D.C. area are expected to drive to their end-of-year holiday destinations.

WASHINGTON - If you are hitting the highway this holiday season – you won’t be alone! More than 2.5 million travelers in the Washington, D.C. area are expected to drive to their end-of-year holiday destinations.

According to data from AAA, the most congested days on the roads are expected to be Saturday, December 23 and Thursday, December 28. Drivers can also expect to see higher than usual traffic on Saturday, December 30 as people depart for their New Year’s destinations.

Travelers hoping to avoid the gridlock should leave in the morning on those days as traffic is expected to build up during the afternoon.

Millions in DC area expected to hit the highway for end-of-year holiday travel

As the travel rush gets underway, gas prices nationally and locally are at the lowest they’ve been all year. The AAA national average on December 22 stood at $3.12 a gallon. Locally, the average price per gallon was listed at $3.27 in D.C., $3.19 in Maryland, and at $2.99 in Virginia on Friday.

Nearly 163,000 D.C. area residents are expected to fly to their destinations this holiday season. Nearly 140,000 metro area residents are predicted to travel by bus, train, or cruise for the holidays.

AAA projects 115.2 million travelers across the country will head 50 miles or more from home over the 10-day year-end holiday travel period - the second-highest year-end travel forecast since 2000.

Drivers can use AAA Fuel Price Finder to get the latest fuel prices at more than 100,000 stations in the United States.