SOUTHLAND – (INT) – In spite of rising gas prices that have shifted into overdrive, the Automobile Club of Southern California is expecting this year’s Thanksgiving holiday to be the busiest one locally for travel in ten years.

The AAA predicts 3.87 million residents will get away for the long weekend. That’s a 3.6 percent increase over last year’s 3.74 million travelers.

Almost 86 percent of local travelers will be going by car to their destinations.

Statewide, 6.26 million are projected to travel over the Thanksgiving holiday, also a 3.6 percent increase from last year and the highest number of Thanksgiving travelers since 2007.

California gas prices have skyrocketed in the last two weeks to their highest levels in more than two years and are likely to remain above $3.20 on average in most areas throughout the holiday weekend. This will be the most expensive Thanksgiving to fill up since 2013, when Los Angeles gas prices averaged more than $3.60 a gallon.

Story Date: November 25, 2017