LUZERNE COUNTY, Pa. — The rest stop on Interstate 81 in Dorrance Township was packed with travelers on their way to their Fourth of July destinations
"Hershey, Pennsylvania, then we are going to Illinois," said Debbie Lockard of New York.
"We are going to see our son and our two grandkids, five and a half and seven and a half," said Barb Lewis.
For the Hartensteine family, their final destination is in Mississippi, 1,500 miles away from home. The kids taking a much-needed lunch break.
"My body falls asleep and gets tired, and I just want to get out and walk around," said Cecilia Hartensteine of New York.
AAA expects 43.2 million people will drive to their holiday weekend getaway.
That's a four percent increase compared to 2019.
Travelers tell Newswatch 16 they're noticing the increased traffic. Barb Lewis is driving from New York to New Hampshire.
"Yesterday was great, today is really busy. We had to get off 81 and do some kind of crazy loopy-loop to get through stop-and-go traffic," said Barb Lewis.
"People tell Newswatch 16 they hit the road bright and early to beat the holiday rush.
"Well, we left at five this morning, and it went well. Then there was a little more traffic than expected, said Maurice Richard from Montreal, Canada.
"It's been pretty busy, and that worries me at my age, I don't like to travel in that mess. I think going down to Harrisburg since 81 is a thru-way, it will be pretty busy," said Sherman Lockard of New York.
AAA estimates the worst time to drive back home is July 5th between the hours of 3 p.m. and 6 p.m.
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