The USDOT reminds us that it’s not only public transportation hubs that see an influx of users–individual travel also shoots up during that time. Ninety-one percent of travel during this period happens in personal cars.

And although heavy media attention focuses on crowded airports and bus and train stations on the Wednesday before and Sunday after Thanksgiving, when personal vehicle trips are added to the mix the National Household Travel Survey (NHTS) reveals that Thanksgiving Day is actually a heavier long-distance travel day than Wednesday. 

All that driving around eats up a lot of gasoline, which eats up a lot of money. But there are ways to save money on gas, like figuring out which areas along your travel route might have the lowest prices, or even making a pit stop a few miles out of the way to save on the green.

AAA Insurance says that the 2014 Thanksgiving weekend will see the lowest gas prices in four years. The current national average price of a gallon of gas is $3.24, says AreaVibes.com. Illinoisgasprices.com says the current average price of a gallon of gas in Illinois is $2.90.

Check out this infographic showing which areas in Illinois have the highest and lowest gas prices as of the afternoon of Nov. 24 according to Illinoisgasprices.com. The prices may change as the holiday approaches.

gas prices road

AAA Insurance also said that 2014 will be the biggest Thanksgiving travel weekend since 2007, with more than 46.3 million people hitting the roads and the skies to visit friends and family for the big feast for an average of 549 miles traveled.

In Illinois, the Associated Press says Illinois’ tollway system will see more than 8 million drivers from Wednesday through Monday of the holiday weekend. More than 300,000 more drivers are expected to be on the roads on any day during the weekend than are usually on the roads on any given day in Illinois.  The Chicago Tribune reports that based on Google info from 2012 and 2013, Chicago’s worst times for traffic will be between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. Wednesday.

 

NEXT ARTICLE: Pain at the pump: Illinois gas prices

 

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