Sluggish Economy Expected to Cause Small Dip in Holiday Travel

The difference might be barely noticeable for those taking the road Wednesday night, but Thanksgiving travel is expected to take a dip this year.

According to AAA, 43.4 million people are expected to take to the roads, tracks and airways for a distance of 50 miles and greater this year. That's a slight drop off from the 44 million who took to the roads last year.

In New York, about 2.61 million people are expected to travel in the state—90 percent by automobile—this year. That figure was about 2.68 million last year, according to AAA.

This is despite gas prices being about $0.40 per gallon lower than they were during the summer.

"It's the economy," said Robert Sinclair, a spokesman for AAA New York. "You can trace everything back to 2005 when a record 58 million travelled. In 2007, 50 million travelled and from 2007 to 2008, when the economy started to tank, there was drop off of 12 million. Things muddied along post recession…and this year we dipped down again."

Although there have been improvement in the unemployment rate and the housing market, those gains haven't been enough to prevent a small dip in travel volumes.

Rain, snow flurries and strong winds have been forecast for the area through the overnight.

The last alert issued by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey this morning advised that weather conditions at LaGuardia Airport have caused disruptions in flight activity. Travelers were advised to check with their airlines for possible flight changes.

Approximately 4.7 million people are expected to use the Port Authority’s bridges, airports, tunnels and PATH system during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.