Traffic, Troopers take to the roads

Published 11:48 pm Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Those planning to take to the roads today or tomorrow for the Thanksgiving holiday will have plenty of company on the highways according to AAA-Alabama.

In their annual release of Thanksgiving traffic, the agency projects an increase of 11.4 percent in road travelers this season compared to last Thanksgiving.

The Thanksgiving travel period is defined as the period beginning today and lasting through Sunday, Nov. 28.

Email newsletter signup

“While Americans remain cautious with household budgets and discretionary spending amidst high levels of unemployment, many are in a better financial position this Thanksgiving than a year ago,” said AAA Alabama spokesperson Clay Ingram. “This improvement, along with a strong desire to spend time with friends and family, is expected to propel a significant increase in Thanksgiving travel.”

The higher traffic volumes — which accompany every holiday season — is also being matched by an increase in patrolling by Alabama State Troopers.

Troopers announced earlier this week they are beginning a four-day “blitz” of the state’s highways beginning today. The blitz means Troopers will be out in force as part of the Department of Public Safety’s Take Back our Highways campaign.

During the 102-hour period, holiday travelers will see more troopers on patrol and more tickets being written.

Last Thanksgiving eight people died on state roadways. Troopers estimate alcohol was a factor in half of those deaths. Troopers have been staging the statewide blitzes since August 2007.

DPS officials say there has been a decrease in the number of highway deaths each year since the campaigns began.

AAA-Alabama said the reason for the projected increase appears to “be the result of modestly improved economic conditions since last year.”

Although it’s nice to see the projected increase, it does come two years after a historic 25.2 percent decline in travel in 2008 and a near negligible growth in 2009 of 0.2 percent.

Nationwide, AAA projects the number of Americans traveling for the Thanksgiving holiday will be approximately 42.2 million travelers making a trip of at least 50 miles from home.

Associated Press reports contributed to this report.