AAA East Tennessee is predicting a bump in holiday travel for the Labor Day weekend, but those numbers could be tempered because of Hurricane Isaac.
According to AAA, the survey was made prior to Isaac making landfall, but it still anticipates 33 million Americans to roam around for the last break of summer -- 3 percent higher than last year.
"Despite a sluggish economy and recent rises in gas prices, the increase in expected Labor Day holiday weekend travelers is driven by improving consumer confidence compared to one year ago and Americans' unwavering desire to travel. The U.S. consumer sentiment index increased more than expected according to a Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan report, and is expected in increase during the next six months," AAA officials said in the report.
The survey showed that traveling by automobile -- 86 percent -- remains the most popular holiday travel method, followed by air travel, an industry that is seeing a 4 percent decrease in fares compared with last year.
The average distance traveled by Americans this Labor Day holiday is expected to be 626 miles, up slightly from last year's average of 608 miles, the report said.
Despite the longer travel distance, most holiday travelers -- 54 percent -- will take shorter-distance trips, between 100 and 400 miles round trip.
The other factor that could drive down travel options this year is the average retail price of regular unleaded in the United States, $3.75 per gallon, 15 cents more than last year.