Get ready for record-breaking July 4, summer travel season, AAA warns

If you're hitting the roads in Massachusetts, New England or beyond this July 4 holiday, get ready for traffic. AAA projects a record-breaking summer travel season this year, with an estimated 71 million people planning to travel for the July 4 holiday, marking a 5% increase over last year and an 8% increase over 2019."That clearly tells us that we are out of the pandemic in terms of numbers," Mark Schieldrop of AAA Northeast said.This year's trend is not just about short trips. Travel experts are noticing an increase in weeklong vacations around the holiday. This is the first year AAA is studying travel numbers for the entire week of July 4, including the Saturday before and the Sunday after. "The traditional short holiday weekend, that's kind of going out the window now as folks are a little more flexible with their scheduling and so we are adjusting our forecast to accommodate that," Schieldrop said. More than 60 million people are expected to travel by car, with the busiest days on the road projected to be Tuesday and Wednesday. The peak travel times are expected to be between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m."Good rule of thumb is the sooner that you can leave, preferably right after that morning breakfast, get in the car and you can maybe get ahead of some of that traffic as it builds up in the afternoon and the evening," Schieldrop said. Meanwhile, air travel is also making a comeback this summer with a 12% increase versus 2019. The significant jump is attributed to lower gas prices and a strong dollar overseas.Video below: Heavy traffic expected day before holiday