Drivers fill the roadways to enjoy holiday weekend
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
More Individuals are getting out on the roads to take holiday trips. Missouri State Highway Patrol tweeted that if holiday plans involve drinking, to get a sober driver.
Andy Strubel is a Columbia resident. He said that he heard from family that the travel is not as easy as one might expect.
"We heard from several family members from out of town that the travel was difficult, its lots of traffic, several accidents, especially in the rain. Hopefully, those have dissipated,"Â Said Strubel.
More people are getting vaccinated, and restrictions are becoming looser; the trips give people a sense of normalcy.
Scott Clardy, assistant director of Columbia/ Boone County Public Health and Human Services, said people that are planning to travel should research the area they plan to visit.
"If you are concerned about exposure to COVID, look up what transmission looks like in the area you are going to," said Clardy.
Clardy added that the idea of people traveling out of Boone County and coming back and people traveling into Boone County is concerning to health officials. Although the concern for this factor is not as big as it was last year because more than half of Boone County people are now vaccinated, Clardy stated.
People traveling should also watch gas prices. According to gasbuddy.com, the average price of gas right now in Missouri is three dollars a gallon.
Nick Chabarria, a spokesperson for AAA at St. Louis Regional Headquarters, said that these are the highest gas price averages in Missouri and around the country for labor day weekend since 2014.
Chabarria also added that Missouri is still in the Top 10 cheapest states for gas despite the gas price increase. He suggests that drivers coming back to Missouri, hold off until getting home if possible because it's possible to find it cheaper.
