New Jerseyans to Hit the Road for 4th of July

If you plan on doing any traveling on the Fourth of July weekend, odds are you’ll want to get an early start to beat the traffic.

AAA of Florham Park said over 1 million Garden State residents plan on driving more than 50 miles for their Fourth of July weekend destination. It’s a small decrease from the same weekend in 2012, but still a lot to demand on New Jersey roads. 

Cathleen Lewis, the director of Public Affairs for AAA New Jersey, said residents are “ready for a vacation this summer,” due in part to a “pent-up desire from the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.”

Besides the 1,043,559 residents who will take to their cars for the Fourth of July, a further 93,931 will take to the skies and fly to their weekend destination. Another 108,251 will travel by train, bus, watercraft or another mode of transportation.

Part of the appeal is likely due to lower-than-usual gas prices this year. The average price per gallon of gas over the Fourth of July weekend in New Jersey will be $3.38 this year, up from $3.30 in 2012 but far below the 2011 price of $3.59. 

The highest Fourth of July gas prices in recent years were seen in 2008, when the average gallon cost $3.98.

Do you plan to travel for the Fourth of July weekend? Let us know in the comments!