TACOMA, Wash. — More than 47 million Americans, including more than one million Washingtonians, are expected to travel for the Fourth of July.
A spokesperson for AAA Washington said the highest number of people ever from Washington state will be taking road trips to their destination this holiday weekend.
Eastbound Highway 18 from Issaquah to Interstate 90 is expected to be one of the worst routes this weekend.
Southbound Interstate 5 between Kent and Tacoma is also expected to be busier than usual.
About 86% of Washingtonians will be hitting the roads and just 13% are expected to fly through airports this weekend.
"I think the high number of road trips is in part due to COVID and sort of people coming out of the non-travel mode," said Kelly Just, public relations and traffic safety manager for AAA Washington. "I think the amount of road trips people are taking is very indicative of how comfortable people are feeling. More people are getting their vaccinations, more people are heading out," she said.
Most Washingtonians are expected to stay in Washington state with top travel destinations being Leavenworth, Bellingham and Seattle.
For those choosing to fly, popular destinations are Southern California theme parks and the Hawaiian islands.