FARGO - Fewer Midwesterners may be hitting the road over the Labor Day holiday, AAA says.
Gene LaDoucer, a spokesman for the travel agency, said surveys of Midwesterners found a drop of 0.2 percent in the number of people planning road trips over the Labor Day weekend. That compares to a projected increase of 0.2 percent for the U.S. as a whole.
The surveys were taken before the most recent upswing in prices, so the number of travelers could drop even more. People are worried about costs, especially the cost of gasoline, LaDoucer said.
Prices in the Midwest are elevated because of problems with refineries, said Gail Weinholzer, Director of Public Affairs with AAA Minnesota/Iowa.
Trucks have been traveling as far as 600 miles to bring gas back to North Dakota, LaDoucer said. "Gas prices will probably continue to move higher over the next few weeks until the issue (with supply) gets resolved," he said.
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Wayne Tesmer, Fargo, said that gas prices are on his mind, "but not enough to cause me to cancel our travel plans."
But Mark Ellenson, West Fargo, N.D., said the cost of fuel is too high for him to travel. He said gas should be conserved "for people who really need the gas."
Some people may be staying home because they did their traveling on the July 4 holiday when a record 41 million Americans hit the road, Weinholzer said.
- Associated Press
