AAA Mid-Atlantic is predicting a record number will travel this Fourth of July weekend, despite higher gas prices.
The auto club estimates 1.16 million Virginians will travel between Wednesday and Sunday, July 6. That would be a 1.9 percent increase over last Fourth of July weekend and the first increase since 2011.
More than 1 million of those travelers are expected to drive, even though gas costs about 16 cents per gallon more than it did a year ago. The average price in Virginia is $3.49 for a gallon of regular unleaded gas.
Motorists in Maryland are paying three cents more at the pump when compared with a week ago.
AAA Mid-Atlantic said Friday in a weekly report that the average price of a gallon of regular unleaded gas in Maryland was $3.70, up from $3.67 a week ago.
The price of gas in the state is currently two cents above the national average of $3.68.
The average price of a gallon of unleaded gas around the state includes $3.69 in Baltimore, $3.77 in Cumberland, $3.73 in Hagerstown and $3.63 in Salisbury.
Air travel is also expected to increase slightly, with fliers taking advantage of fares that are 5 percent lower than last Fourth of July.
AAA says the travel increase reflects a boost in consumer confidence.
