Local

Busy Labor Day weekend breaks travel records

ALLEGHENY COUNTY, Pa. — People were on the move Monday, making their way home from the long holiday weekend. The busy roads caused headaches for some drivers.

“More traffic. People in a hurry, always on their phones,” said driver Frank Gentile of Zelienople.

Ron Shipman was heading home to Pittsburgh from Cochran.

“[Interstate] 79 was kind of rough right by Slippery Rock,” Shipman said. “It’s under construction so we went off and went around it. Other than that, it was pretty smooth sailing.”

Smooth sailing, apparently for cruises, rental cars, flights and hotels. According to AAA, travel is up for all of them this Labor Day weekend with a 4% increase in domestic bookings and a 44% spike in international bookings from this same time last year.

And for those who hit the road this holiday weekend, gas prices were also up, slightly.

“Seems like they’re a little higher,” said Shipman.

Gentile said the higher prices didn’t stop him from taking a short road trip to go camping this weekend.

“Gas is always high,” he said. “It’s a shame but what are you going to do? You want to do it, you got to pay for the gas.”

There is some good news, though. The price at the pump is starting to come down. As of Sept. 4, gas prices in Pennsylvania average $3.86 for regular. That’s 2 cents lower from a week ago but there were some gas station prices sitting above average.

Gas at one station in Shaler is priced at $3.99.

“It’s quite expensive,” said Leah Miller of Pittsburgh. “I definitely have noticed the prices have gone up, for sure.”

Air travel is also ticking up with numbers this summer hitting a new record. The TSA is expecting to screen more than 14 million passengers from Sept. 1-6, an 11% jump compared to last year.

Some travelers, including Gentile, are thankful the busy summer travel season is coming to an end.

“I’m actually over the holiday, to be honest with you,” Gentile said. “I’m glad that fall’s in the air.”

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