Memorial Day Weekend traffic trends toward record number of road trips as travelers hit the roads
From the Jersey Shore to the Poconos, thousands of people were on the roads Friday in the Philadelphia area.
"It's (traffic) pretty crazy. There's a lot of people everywhere!" Joshua Filzer said at the King of Prussia Service Plaza.
On 76, it was stop-and-go traffic Friday night, and it looked the same from Chopper 3 over the Atlantic City Expressway.
Filzer was hoping to avoid the backups.
"Uh, we tried, but it's easier said than done," a dad from North Jersey said.
With two little ones and a dog, the Filzer family is headed to West Virginia to camp.
"It should take six hours. I'm looking at...at least 10," Filzer said.
There's a lot of company on the roads this year. AAA predicts road trips will set a record for Memorial Day Weekend. The Pennsylvania Turnpike estimates 715,000 drivers on Friday alone.
Gilbert Jordan is headed to Washington, D.C., with his family. Around dinnertime Friday, he said traffic from Perkasie has not been bad.
"I've been looking at the app online and everything seems to be smooth sailing pretty much!" Jordan said.
Lorena Brown was heading to Lancaster with her daughter, Mia.
"We do plan for traffic. This year we left a little later than usual, but we usually try to leave New York around 12 o'clock to beat most of the traffic," Brown said.
The two are on their annual girls' trip for a dance competition this weekend.
"Instead of taking about two and a half hours, it's taking almost three and a half," Brown said on leaving later than usual.
Still, it's time the Staten Island mom cherishes with her daughter.
"We complain (about) traffic and time, but it's something that I'll hold dear forever," Brown said, getting choked up.