Fourth of July road travel: increase of out-of-state travelers in Colorado

If you thought the roads would be empty this weekend - think again. 

Officials with AAA say Americans are expected take 700 million trips this summer - especially this weekend. 

Due to the pandemic - experts say more people are opting to travel by the safety of their cars rather than by sky or sea.

Though holiday travel may not be as heavy as Fourth of July in 2019 - don't expect the roads to be empty in 2020 either. 

Especially since gas prices are down 20 cents since last year. 

"Last year we forecasted 49 million Americans would be traveling for the Fourth of July holiday - and 850,000 of those would be Coloradans," says Skyler McKinley, Director of Public Relations for AAA Colorado. "Increasingly, people are choosing to drive instead of fly. We're just not going to see the same volume as last year."

McKinley says to expect high congestion on I-25 and up in the mountains, as well as more out-of-state tourists. 

"We did survey where people are searching, where they want to travel. This year Denver is top of the list. People are intrigued by the national parks, they know Denver is a good access point for one of those," says McKinley.  

But with more people coming in to Colorado - McKinley says now is not the time for a spontaneous road trip. 

"There's a good chance your favorite camping site may require a reservation or may be full," says McKinley. "Keep in mind if you're traveling through rural communities - they may not have the health care resources should an outbreak occur." 

AAA is not running their sober ride program this holiday weekend, and won't be picking up drunk drivers in an effort to contain the spread of the virus.