Yes, gas prices are both lowest and highest. When compared to past Memorial Day weekends, it's the lowest since 2005, and by no coincidence the highest amount of travelers will take to the roads since the same year. Guess what that is doing to VMT?
"Gas prices are at their highest point for the year as we approach the Memorial Day holiday, and the national average has increased for 12 days in a row," according to AAA on May 23.
Today’s average of $2.28 per gallon is up six cents per gallon on the week and 15 cents per gallon on the month. Despite this increase, drivers remain on target to pay the lowest prices for the Memorial Day holiday since 2005.
Prices rose another four cents through Sunday, the day before Memorial Day. See today's national average price here.
Planetizen noted that last year "that gas prices for this holiday weekend were the lowest in six years—since 2009."
Motorists are taking advantage of the low gas prices, as well as being deterred by unusually long lines at security check-ins at airports throughout the country.
AAA projects more than 38 million Americans will travel this Memorial Day weekend, which is an increase of 700,000 compared to a year ago. That is the second-highest Memorial Day travel volume on record and the most since 2005. Nearly 34 million (89 percent) holiday travelers will drive to their Memorial Day destinations, an increase of 2.1 percent over last year.
What this increase means for vehicle miles traveled (VMT)
Last year we pegged the AAA Memorial Day holiday travel projection with a May 20, 2015 Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) press release indicating that "Americans drove 261.7 billion vehicle-miles-traveled (VMT) in March of this year, which is the most ever driven in March."
According to the May 27, 2016 FHWA press release, March VMT increased to 273.4 billion miles, an increase of 11.7 billion miles or 4.5 percent; once again, shattering all records. Both press releases show a corresponding increase when comparing seasonally-adjusted vehicle miles traveled.
All data can be found in FHWA's Traffic Volume Trends, "a monthly report based on hourly traffic count data reported by the States."
Whatever happened to the good old days of "peak car"?
Hat tip to AASHTO Journal Weekly Newsmagazine
FULL STORY: Gas Prices Hit 2016 Highs Heading Into Memorial Day
Oregon Passes Exemption to Urban Growth Boundary
Cities have a one-time chance to acquire new land for development in a bid to increase housing supply and affordability.
Where Urban Design Is Headed in 2024
A forecast of likely trends in urban design and architecture.
Savannah: A City of Planning Contrasts
From a human-scales, plaza-anchored grid to suburban sprawl, the oldest planned city in the United States has seen wildly different development patterns.
Washington Tribes Receive Resilience Funding
The 28 grants support projects including relocation efforts as coastal communities face the growing impacts of climate change.
Adaptive Reuse Bills Introduced in California Assembly
The legislation would expand eligibility for economic incentives and let cities loosen regulations to allow for more building conversions.
LA's Top Parks, Ranked
TimeOut just released its list of the top 26 parks in the L.A. area, which is home to some of the best green spaces around.
City of Rochester
Boston Harbor Now
City of Bellevue
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Birmingham, Alabama
City of Laramie, Wyoming
Colorado Department of Local Affairs
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.