Memorial Day travel expected to jump, although high gas prices might keep some at home

Memorial Day weekend is expected to usher in cool temperatures, cloudy skies and a chance of rain in Sonoma County, just days after a sweltering heat wave baked the North Bay.

Warmer temperatures are in the forecast, though. The warm-up will return by the end of the holiday weekend, according to the National Weather Service.

“As we get into Sunday night, we see a pattern change, which really has things clear up for Monday, and that’s when we start to see temps rebound,” said Brayden Murdock, a Bay Area forecaster with the weather service.

In Santa Rosa, a high of 70 degrees is predicted on Saturday with a 20% chance of rain. Sunny skies are expected to return Sunday, with a high of 73 degrees, and Monday’s high is set to hit 78, according to the weather service.

The city’s normal high for those dates is 77 degrees.

While the rain isn’t likely to spread south of Sonoma County, temperatures throughout the Bay Area are expected to be in line with the North Bay for the holiday weekend. The weather service is forecasting highs in the 70s inland and in the 60s along the coast.

“For the Bay Area and really all the way down to the central coast and Sacramento Valley, it looks to be just a little bit cooler than average,” Murdock said.

Despite the cooler temperatures, “we still have some fire danger out there,” Murdock said.

He urged people to remain cautious when camping, grilling, off-road driving or doing other activities that could spark wildfires.

Sonoma County residents planning to get out of town for the holiday should expect to see busy roads and airports, with travel volumes set to close in on pre-pandemic levels, according to AAA.

AAA is predicting 39.2 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more from home this weekend, which is an increase of 8.3% over last year.

Air travel is expected to jump 25% over last year, AAA said.

“Memorial Day is always a good predictor of what’s to come for summer travel,” said Paula Twidale, senior vice president of AAA Travel, in a news release.

“Based on our projections, summer travel isn’t just heating up, it will be on fire,” Twindale said. “People are overdue for a vacation and they are looking to catch up on some much-needed R&R in the coming months.”

Big cities and beaches are looking to be the top destinations for the weekend, according to AAA.

Based on company booking data, the most popular cities for U.S. travelers are likely to be Orlando, Florida; Seattle; and Miami, AAA said.

In Sonoma County, if you’re planning a road trip this weekend here’s hoping you’ve saved up.

As of Thursday, California’s average cost for a gallon of regular gas was nearly $1.50 higher than the national average of $4.60, according to AAA’s Fuel Gauge Report.

Going into the holiday weekend in Santa Rosa and its surrounding areas, gas is now well above the $6 mark, according to the report.

It’s an expense that might put a dampener on many locals’ summer plans.

“We had a lot of road trips planned this summer, but I think a lot of them are going to end up being canceled because of how much it costs,” said Stuart McKay, 21, a caterer from Healdsburg, who added that he isn’t reimbursed for gas by his employer.

“I drive an hour to and from work, and it's taking a ton of my cut,” he said Thursday while he pumped gas at the Shell station on Corby Avenue in Santa Rosa, where regular gas was $6.39 per gallon.

“I hope the summer doesn't make it go up too much, to $7, because that would be painful,” said Mason Lox, 20, a Costco employee, who was directing the lines of heavy traffic through the gas station off Santa Rosa Avenue.

Lox drives a Toyota Tundra and at one time paid $100 every three weeks to fill the pickup truck’s tank. He said he now pays $180.

He added that his Memorial Day weekend plans are likely to be affected by gas prices.

“I have family in Sacramento, but I probably won't drive out there just because the prices are so high,” he said.

Gas prices began to rise again in early March, shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine, which experts maintain has significantly impacted the world’s oil supply.

The cost of oil, experts stress, is the bottom-line factor of fuel prices.

Russia is a top oil provider and the European Union is discussing sanctions that may push crude oil prices up further. As of Thursday, domestic oil sold for around $114 per barrel after weeks of fluctuations.

Sofia Gutierrez, 18, who was also buying gas on Corby Avenue on Thursday, said that since she recently quit her job it's been tough to fill up her pickup with regular unleaded gas at nearly $7 a gallon.

She said she also had summer road trip plans she had to cancel because of gas prices.

“There was actually a sticker a couple days ago that said 'Biden did that,'” she said, pointing at the prices on the pump. “I feel like, if they could lower the prices... But I think we can't do anything about it. I just hope they go down soon.”

You can reach Staff Writer Matt Pera at matthew.pera@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @Matt__Pera.