traveling this memorial day weekend put some deep breaths on your checklist americans should brace for jammed highways and long airport lines with more people projected to drive and fly this holiday weekend compared to last year experts say gas is 1 cheaper than it was at the same point last year and airline passengers aren’t flinching from pricey tickets still powered by the pentup demand to see family and friends as the pandemic recedes “the roads are going to be pretty packed” said aaa spokeswoman aixa diaz “the bottom line is the later you wait in the day the worse it is unless you drive at night” “if there ever was a time you want to get to the airport early it’s this one” she added “whether driving or flying pack your patience and prepare for heavy traffic on the road and at the airport” said erika richter spokeswoman for the american society of travel advisors aaa is projecting that 371 million people will be driving at least 50 miles this upcoming weekend that’s 2 million more people traveling by automobile compared to last year they’ll be driving on cheaper gas nationally a gallon of gas averaged 357 on thursday down from 459 one year ago aaa said meanwhile nearly 34 million airline passengers are projected to fly this weekend according to aaa that would surpass prepandemic levels when 32 million people flew over the memorial day weekend in 2019 all together 423 million people are expected to travel this weekend via cars planes buses trains according to aaa estimates that’s higher than the 396 million who traveled last memorial day weekend and just under 2019 levels three major airlines american airlines aal  united ual and delta air lines dal  are expected to handle nearly 60 of the flights according to a thursday note from td cowen like others analysts at td cowen a division of td securities say it’s going to be a brisk summer travel season “we continue to see strong demand for air travel with this summer’s focus on international remember the us government did not eliminate testing until midjune last year after most people planned their vacations” they wrote   related is it possible to book a cheap summer flight here are 5 tricks to save money when to expect the worst friday is the day when roads and airports are going to be the busiest on the roads congestion is going to peak that day from 300 pm to 600 pm according to inrix a trafficdata analytics firm inside airports approximately 26 million people will pass through transportation security administration checkpoints that day the agency said during last year’s memorial day weekend 238 million people passed through tsa checkpoints the agency’s data showed teens aged 1317 can now go with tsa precheckenrolled parents and guardians when they are on the same reservation and when the tsa precheck indicator shows on the child’s pass children ages 12 and under can still walk through checkpoints with their enrolled parents or guardians once getting on the plane don’t count on having a nearby spare seat seating capacity is currently slated to be 17 higher than last memorial day weekend according to the travel app hoppercom this weekend lastminute tickets are averaging 273 and that’s around 100 less than ticketprice averages at the same point last year and slightly cheaper than 2019 levels hoppercom’s data said international travel is a different story fares to europe for example are more than 50 higher than last year according to hoppercom what happens after friday on the roads there’s little extra traffic expected on saturday and sunday according to projections from inrix a transportation analytics company on monday the worst traveling time is 12 pm to 3 pm the window for less traffic that day is before 10 am inrix noted as for flights richter said airlines and operators “are obligated to share the latest information if it impacts your travel” downloading smartphone apps for your airline activating the notifications and opting for text and email alerts will also help keep you abreast of any lastminute changes she said through march less than 2 of scheduled domestic flights have been cancelled the us department of transportation said tuesday that’s below last year’s 27 cancellation average and the 41 rate for the first three months of 2022 the department noted a transportation department dashboard shows which airline carriers have committed to passengerfriendly accommodations when delays and cancellations occur for example some but not all airlines will rebook your flight with a partner airline at no additional cost but richter said the volume and potentials for travel snags this memorial day weekend could be a preview for the months to come “travel delays will be inevitable this summer so make sure you are planning ahead” she said