Labor Day weekend travel: What are the best and worst times to drive?

It’s been a boom year for travel thus far (to put it mildly) and the upcoming Labor Day weekend period will prove no exception. If heading out of town to celebrate this September holiday, which traditionally marks the unofficial end of summer, prepare yourself for more intense crowding and congestion than last year.

Newly released AAA data shows that travel bookings are up across the board when compared with the same period in 2022. U.S. domestic bookings for flights, hotels, cruises and rental cars are up four percent, while international bookings have increased by 44 percent.

“Labor Day weekend will be the big sendoff to what has been an extremely busy summer travel season,” said Debbie Haas, Vice President of Travel for AAA – The Auto Club Group.

A uniquely American holiday, Labor Day is big among road trippers who are headed to some place out of town to bid a final farewell to the summer season and kids’ school breaks. Before packing up the family and the car for several hours spent in traffic, you may want to take a look at AAA’s projections on the best time to hit the road, some of which will depend upon your origin point and destination.

“Most travelers will leave on Thursday or Friday to take advantage of the long holiday weekend,” said Senior Vice President of AAA Travel, Paula Twidale.

“The best times to travel by car over Labor Day weekend are early in the morning or in the evening,” Bob Pishue, transportation analyst at INRIX, said in the release. “If you must travel during heavy traffic, navigation apps and local departments of transportation can help steer drivers around long delays.”

INRIX, the global transportation data and insights provider that works with AAA on its holiday travel projections, said that itanticipates Thursday, August 31 between 2:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. to be the busiest time on the roads during the long Labor Day weekend. In addition, traffic is expected to have heavier than normal on Friday, September 1, between the hours 11:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m.

When road warriors go to fill up at the pump prior to setting off on their trips, they are likely to find petrol prices similar to what they saw at this same time last year. The national average for a gallon of regular gasoline was $3.78 on Labor Day 2022. While July gas prices shot up due to a limited oil supply, August has seen them level off a bit and AAA expects prices will remain steady heading into the long holiday weekend.

Date      Worst Travel Time           Best Travel Time

Wednesday, August 30 12:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.     Before 7:00 a.m.

Thursday, August 31       12:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.     Before 7:00 a.m.

Friday, September 1       11:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m.     Before 11:00 a.m.

Saturday, September 2 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.     After 6:00 a.m.

Sunday, September 3    Minimal Traffic Impact Expected

Monday, September 4  10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.     After 7:00 p.m.

Metro   Route    Peak Congestion Period                Est. Travel Time                Compared to Typical

Atlanta Birmingham to Atlanta via I-20 E                Wednesday, 1:00 p.m.   4 Hours 6 Minutes           58%

Boston  Boston to Hyannis via Pilgrim Hwy S         Thursday, 3:30 p.m.        1 Hours 58 Minutes         54%

Chicago                Milwaukee to Chicago via I-94 E Thursday, 4:45 p.m.        2 Hours 32 Minutes         25%

Denver Palisade to Denver via I-70 E       Monday, 4:00 p.m.          4 Hours, 58 Minutes        32%

Detroit  Detroit to Grand Rapids via I-96 W            Saturday, 10:15 a.m.       3 Hours 7 Minutes           35%

Houston               Galveston to Houston via I-45 N                Friday, 4:45 p.m.               1 Hours 37 Minutes         40%

Los Angeles        Los Angeles to Bakersfield via I-5 N          Wednesday, 4:30 p.m.   2 Hours 58 Minutes         88%

Minneapolis       Minneapolis to Eau Claire via I-94 E          Wednesday, 4:45 p.m.   1 Hours 39 Minutes         21%

New York            Jersey Shore to New York via Garden St Pkwy N                Monday, 11:15 a.m.        1 Hours 46 Minutes         64%

Portland               Cannon Beach to Portland via Sunset Highway E                Wednesday, 1:00 p.m.   1 Hours 38 Minutes         36%

San Diego            Palm Springs to San Diego via I-15 S         Monday, 4:45 p.m.          2 Hours 44 Minutes         29%

San Francisco     San Francisco to Monterey via Santa Cruz Hwy S                Sunday, 4:00 p.m..           3 Hours 11 Minutes         68%

Seattle  Seattle to Bellingham. via I-5 N  Thursday, 3:30 p.m.        2 Hours 34 Minutes         71%

Tampa  Tampa to Orlando via I-4 E           Thursday, 8:15 a.m.         1 Hours 54 Minutes         36%

Washington DC Washington DC to Baltimore via Balt/Wash Pkwy N          Friday, 1:45 p.m.               1 Hours 9 Minutes           33%