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AAA Projects Highest No. Of Md. Drivers For Memorial Day Weekend In A Decade Plus

BALTIMORE (WJZ)-- Memorial day weekend is here And thousands of Marylanders are heading out of town.

This is one of the busiest travel days of the year and AAA expects the number of Marylanders traveling to be the highest in more than a decade.

For the third consecutive year, AAA is anticipating more than 843,000 Marylanders will be on the move this holiday weekend.

From the road to the rails. Marylanders are heading out of town this memorial day weekend.

AAA is projecting the highest travel volume since 2005.

"If you're not on the road already, you're too late," one driver said.

While traffic remained steady Friday, travel experts said many people won't be hitting the road until Saturday.

"Friday is typically the busiest getaway day, but what we're finding is many travelers wait til Saturday," said Christine Delise of AAA.

Almost 744,00 Marylanders are projected to drive, and nearly 24,000 are expected to travel by rail.

So what's fueling the uptick? AAA said an improving economy.

"We're seeing personal incomes grow, we're seeing lower unemployment rates, higher consumer confidence, so it seems like this has been building over the years where we're just seeing more and more travelers," Delise said.

Drivers out on the roads are noticing the same thing.

"It seems like there's a lot more cars, I see a lot of people pulling campers, boats," one man said. "People are ready to get out there and barbecue and enjoy themselves."

Travel experts say the best times to hit the road are before 7 a.m. and after 5 p.m.

Nationwide, AAA projects 39 million people will be traveling, which is also the most for the Memorial Day Weekend in 12 years.

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