The price of gasoline hit an average $3.84 a gallon, down from $3.92 a week ago..
A member of a military Honor Guard stands at parade rest during a Memorial Day remembrance at the Soldiers and Sailors Monument on the Boston Common in Boston, Thursday morning, May 26, 2011. Ten thousand American flags have been place near the monument to represent the number of Massachusetts citizens who have given their lives in America"s wars. (AP Photo/Stephan Savoia)WEST SPRINGFIELD – Memorial Day will bring with it solemn commemorations, holiday travel and long awaited summery picnic weather.
Dan Brown, meteorologist at abc40/Fox 6, said predicts warm, muggy, hazy weather in the 80s Saturday, Sunday and Monday, with just a chance of an afternoon storm each day.
AAA predicts that 34.9 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more from home during the Memorial Day holiday weekend, a slight increase of 0.2 percent – or 100,000 travelers – from the 34.8 million people who traveled one year ago. The Memorial Day holiday travel period is defined as Thursday through Monday.
In New England, about 1.5 million people, or 10 percent of the total population, will travel 50 miles or more. That’s unchanged since last year. Of those, 1.39 million will drive, a slight decrease from Memorial Day 2010. Air travel is up, however, with 150,000 people planning to fly, an increase of 10 percent from 2010.
Disney and Maine are popular destinations for AAA members, said Sandra J. Marsian, vice president for membership, marketing and public relations at AAA of Pioneer Valley in West Springfield.
“We get a lot of people headed to Virginia Beach, the Jersey shore and closer to home on Cape Cod,” Marsian said.
The Berkshires also expects visitors.
All 31 state Department of Parks and Recreation properties where the state takes camping reservations we booked solid for this weekend, according to officials. Beyond campsites the state expects high turnouts at all recreational areas.
“It’s been a long wet spring and we want everyone to come out, enjoy our facilities, and kick off the Summer DCR season in a big way,” said Commissioner Edward M. Lambert Jr. in a written statement.
And getting there might be a little easier on the pocketbook than it would have been last week, but much more expensive than it was for Memorial Day 2010.
Gas averaged gas averaged $3.84 a gallon Thursday, according to AAA. That’s down from $3.92 a gallon a week ago. Gas cost $3.86 a month ago. But a gallon of regular gas sold for $2.82 a year ago at this time.
The national average is $3.81, also according to AAA.
The state Division of Standards said a review of octane levels at 86 gas stations around Massachusetts reveals that every station was selling the right gas under the right name. But four stations have been fined in the last month for charging a different price at the pump from the price listed on signage.
Some people are beating high gas prices by letting Peter Pan Bus Lines do the driving. The company anticipates carrying more than 125,000 this weekend with the most popular routes being along the Boston-to-Washington corridor.