Sunshine Expected For Holiday Travelers

Expect choked roadways, plenty of crackling fireworks and a heaping load of sunshine as many Inland Northwest residents head out for extended weekends.

If traveling, count on busy highways, say travel experts. According to this year’s travel survey of 1,500 people by the American Automobile Association, more people are going to get in their cars and drive 100 miles or more than at any time in the last nine years.

Gas prices, announced to be the highest in 10 years nationally, actually are unchanged in most respects in the region. Self-serve unleaded gas sold for $1.24 a gallon last Fourth of July, and the price is the same this year. At $1.35 a gallon, premium gas is unchanged in price from last year, although regular gas is two cents higher a gallon at $1.21.

Higher gas prices won’t deter travelers from hitting the road elsewhere around the country, said Dave Carlson, spokesman for AAA in Boise.

That means more work for Capt. Jim LaMunyon of the Washington State Patrol in Spokane. Administrative officers will take to the highways to increase the patrol’s presence during what he calls one of the “critical weekends” for accidents and fatalities.

Celebrating the Fourth coupled with hot weather means higher potential for drunken driving, LaMunyon said. “We just want to make sure everybody is able to go back to work on Wednesday.”

For tourism and recreation-based businesses, the Fourth represents the unofficial start of the summer tourism season.

, DataTimes MEMO: Changed in the Spokane edition.