Covid has planes in a pickle, and airlines, which saw record-breaking crowds over Labor Day Weekend in 2019, are struggling to remain financially viable and safe in 2020, leading to cancellations of flights for trips reserved months ago and penalties for fliers.
“Car trips remain supreme,” says AAA Texas’ Daniel Armbruster. Those stay-vacations, road trips, have been the saving grace for cabin-weary Covid-fleeing vacationers since March. “You’re going to see most people who travel over Labor Day, 97% of them, doing so by car.It will be just a small decrease in car travel from what we saw the year before.”
And the year before all hotels and restaurants were open, making for a very different landscape as travelers head out for the long weekend.
Armbruster says this year families are heading for safe spaces. “Lakes, state parks are really popular, and national parks as well.And you’d see that even if we weren’t in Covid 19 but there are fewer things that can be done now.”
If you can find one that still has reservations available for the traditional end of summer.
As traffic will only be down about 2-3%, according to Armbruster, expect congestion similar to what you might see any other year, but with fewer options available for food and rest.
A good resource, if you’re driving, is http://conditions.drivetexas.org/current. That will give you an idea of construction areas and slowdowns.
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