Labor Day travel expected to be up over 2009

<p>More people are expected to hit the road Labor Day weekend in a dramatic jump in holiday traveling after years of penny-pinching and staying home.</p><p>AAA reported an 11 percent increase in the number of Californians who said in a survey that they will travel over the weekend.</p><p>“Compared to last year, fewer Californians are expected to pull back on discretionary spending, which will have a considerably positive impact on travel,” Cynthia Harris, AAA's Northern California spokeswoman, said in a statement.</p><p>The car was the most common way people said they will get away, a trend reflected at the automobile association's Santa Rosa office on Farmers Lane, where people come for road maps, staff said.</p><p>“People are taking short trips, they're visiting family, a lot of camping,” said Laurie Casey, who has worked as a travel agent in the auto department for about 20 years.</p><p>“They're not going as far as a big trip to Disneyland,” she said.</p><p>More than 3.5 million state residents will drive to their destinations, an 11.6 percent increase from last year, AAA reported. Among all travelers, more than 4 million people will travel 50 miles or more, another 11 percent increase from 2009.</p><p>Gas prices declined since June due to a combination of lowering crude oil prices, more production and high volumes of gasoline in storage, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.</p><p>In Santa Rosa, the cost of regular gasoline has dropped almost 4 cents during the past month, according to AAA's daily fuel gauge report. The average price of $3.105 per gallon was nearly five cents higher than it was the same time last year.</p><p>Air travel was also expected to increase compared to last year, but by a less dramatic amount, at 5.6 percent, AAA reported.</p><p>Rohnert Park resident Sherri Grey said she usually flies back East to visit family on long weekends like Labor Day.</p><p>But Grey has been searching for work in the customer service industry for about a year. She and her husband must mind a strict budget and travel was among the first expenses cut.</p><p>“We'll go to the local pools or maybe the river,” Grey, 46, said.</p><p>Only a trickle of people have checked out the maps and fliers at the county Welcome Center in Santa Rosa's Railroad Square this week, center staff said. Visitors dropped off once school began, said Ruth Straessler, a visitor services representative.</p><p>As for the weekend, they expect foot traffic will increase as Bay Area residents head north to visit Wine Country and are preparing to be busy starting Friday, Straessler said.</p>