Memorial Day Travel: See Gas Price Trends In PA

PENNSYLVANIA — Filling up the gas tank for Memorial Day travel in Pennsylvania is cheaper this year than in 2022, and experts say it will be a busy weekend on the Turnpike and other roads around the state.

More than 2.1 motorists are expected to travel the Pennsylvania Turnpike this weekend, AAA predicts.

Gas prices are lower this holiday than last year, when the national average was more than $4 a gallon according to AAA.

Friday’s national average for a regular unleaded gallon of gas was $3.57, compared to $4.60 a year ago. Pennsylvania’s average gas price was $3.68, with prices as low as $3.15 according to GasBuddy and AAA.

Prices may rise at your local gas station as the weekend draws nearer.

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The roads are expected to be busy, but traffic on Pennsylvania highways may not be quite as heavy as it was before the pandemic.

“Despite the lower prices at the pump, car travel this holiday will be shy of pre-pandemic numbers by about 500,000 travelers,” AAA said in their Memorial Day travel forecast.

Travel dates for this weekend are Thursday-Monday. Transportation data company INRIX predicts that the busiest days will be Thursday and Friday from 3-6 p.m., and Monday from noon-3 p.m.

The lightest traffic days will be Saturday and Sunday, INRIX and AAA predicted. Tuesday, May 30 is expected to be a busy travel day in the evening rush hour.

More than 37 million people will hit the road for Memorial Day across the United States, according to AAA.

“This is expected to be the third busiest Memorial Day weekend since 2000, when AAA started tracking holiday travel,” said Paula Twidale, Senior Vice President of AAA Travel. “More Americans are planning trips and booking them earlier, despite inflation. This summer travel season could be one for the record books, especially at airports.”