High gas prices not stopping Thanksgiving travel
Though gas looms near $100 a barrel, holiday travelers aren't discouraged.
— -- Randy and Peggy Handy almost canceled their annual Thanksgiving trip this year because of soaring gas prices.
The couple, who are driving about 1,200 miles each way from their home in Danville, Va., to Meridian, Philadelphia and Tunica, Miss., weren't sure they could afford the trip.
"But it may be $5 (a gallon) next month," says Peggy, so they decided to go anyway to visit with friends from Randy's days in the Army Signal Corps.
The Handys, both in their 70s, are like millions of Americans this Thanksgiving.
Despite record high gas prices for November, people are not being deterred from driving to visit family and friends.
AAA, the auto club, estimates that 38.7 million people will drive at least 50 miles from home this holiday, a 1.5% increase over last year.
"With Thanksgiving, you're dealing with an unusual situation," says AAA spokesman Mike Pina. "Basically, you're dealing with people coming home once a year. They've got emotional reasons for coming home. It's not really an option not to go home."
Robert Darbelnet, president and CEO of AAA, says, "this is the first time that we have seen gas prices topping more than $3 a gallon in November. A year ago, prices were in the range of $2.20 a gallon, so this year travelers are really feeling the pinch."
AAA expects 4.7 million Americans to fly, up 2.2% over last year; another 2.8 million will go by train, bus or other modes of transportation.
Pina says he has seen no evidence that people opted to drive instead of flying because of expected holiday flight delays.
The Federal Aviation Administration reported Tuesday that most of the country's aviation system was operating smoothly, but the agency did say there were delays in Chicago and the three major airports around New York City, Philadelphia and Atlanta.
At midday, the FAA said delays were mostly moderate. Some arriving flights were delayed over an hour to Newark Liberty International and LaGuardia.
The Handys, who were interviewed at an Interstate 20 rest stop in Alabama, say they always drive. "She's afraid to fly," Randy Handy says.
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