AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The two-state region is getting ready for expected record-breaking travel this coming Memorial Day weekend, the unofficial start of summer.

AAA predicts a record 1.38 million Georgians will travel at least 50 miles from home over the Memorial Day period. That’s an increase of nearly 45,000 compared to last year.

AAA expects more than 45.1 million nationwide to travel for Memorial Day weekend. That’s 1.4 million more domestic travelers than last year. It’s also a new Memorial Day weekend record, surpassing the previous record set back in 2005 with 44 million people.

By car

AAA projects 39.4 million people will travel by car over Memorial Day weekend. That’s 1 million more travelers than last year. This year, 87% of Memorial Day travelers will take a road trip.

Fortunately, a trip to the gas pump should be lower than last year.

Gas is set to be the cheapest it’s been in years as nearly 40 million Americans are expected to hit the road for Memorial Day.

The national average price of a gallon of gas is expected to be $3.08 on Memorial Day, according to projections released Tuesday by Gas Buddy. That’s the lowest price at this time of year since 2021.

If you consider inflation, it’s the cheapest gas has been since 2003, excluding the COVID-19 pandemic.

On Tuesday, gas in Georgia was running $2.92 per gallon, or $2.90 in Augusta. The price in South Carolina was $2.80 per gallon, or $2.82 in Aiken and Edgefield counties.

Drivers can still find ways to save even more at the pump.

• Start by peeking at current prices on the AAA fuel site and using the AAA gas cost calculator to get an idea of the cost of your road trip.
• Once you hit the road, remember that the gas stations right off the interstate are usually the most expensive. If you want to save money, drive farther down the road for cheaper gas. AAA members receive stackable discounts on gas through the Fuel Rewards® program at participating Shell stations.
• After you fill up, avoid speeding. Fuel economy peaks around 50 mph on most cars, then drops off as speeds increase. Reducing highway speeds by 5 to 10 mph can increase fuel economy by as much as 14%.

By air

Airports are bracing for another bustling holiday weekend. AAA projects 3.61 million air passengers, a nearly 2% increase over last year when 3.55 million travelers took to the skies.

While this Memorial Day weekend isn’t expected to set an air travel record, officials do expect to set one at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the world’s busiest.

Officials say they expect 2.6 million travelers to pass through the airport for the Memorial Day period this year.

According to AAA booking data (based on what travelers paid when booking Memorial Day weekend flights):

• Domestic flights are 2% more expensive than last year, with the average round-trip ticket costing $850.
• Most of those flights are to popular destinations like Chicago, New York, Orlando, Denver, and Seattle.

By other modes

Travel by other modes continues to rise steadily post-pandemic.

AAA projects 2.08 million people will travel by train, bus, or cruise over Memorial Day weekend, an 8.5% increase over last year. This category now surpasses pre-pandemic numbers from 2018 and 2019, but it doesn’t reach the record numbers of the early 2000s, when more people chose trains and buses after 9/11.

Cruising’s growing popularity is highlighted by the strong demand for Alaska cruises this season. Top domestic cruise destinations for Memorial Day weekend include Fairbanks, Anchorage and Juneau. Overall, travelers are turning to cruises in record numbers. Earlier this year, AAA projected a record 19 million Americans planned to take cruises in 2025.

Copyright 2025 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Downtown Augusta businesses are up in arms over plans to replace parking with bike lanes — something that could affect all of us.

The businesses – including restaurants on Broad Street – have launched a petition drive that’s gained 1,500 signatures so far.

Downtown Augusta is full of parking on the street right now. That includes convenience spaces in the median of Broad Street.

That could all change as part of a plan to revamp downtown – all on the heels of the removal of countless towering trees, a move that’s drawn criticism from some.

“It’s challenging because Augusta, as desperately as we want to be a Greenville or Savannah, even I’m not sure that we’re quite there yet,” said Emma Claire Hansen, who works at Merry’s Home Furnishings. “I hope that we do get there one day, where it is full of pedestrians who are coming down the sidewalks and riding their bikes downtown. Right now, I’m not sure that it’s all that necessary. But perhaps they see a different end goal than we do. I would be more concerned with parking than the bicycle lane.”

Luigi’s Italian restaurant started the petition that’s been joined by other downtown businesses like Merry’s Home Furnishings, Tribeca Lounge, the Imperial Theatre, the multi-restaurant Frog Hollow Group, Nacho Mama’s and the Sports Center.

“So downtown parking, obviously they are very old streets and it can be a bit of a challenge because the roadways are very narrow down here and there’s not a ton of parking in downtown to begin with,” Hansen said.

Many people are worried about that end goal taking away parking spots they say are needed – potentially taking away business.

“At Merry’s, it’s not as big of a challenge because we are here during the daytime, so it’s a little easier to park here during the daytime,” Hansen said. “But for restaurants, of course, they already seat more people than parking allows in front of their restaurants, so when it gets busy and everyone is coming down for dinner, it’s a challenge.”

One business told News 12 off camera that a key concern is surviving through the construction that downtown construction work will bring.

The businesses seem to agree on wanting to see improvements downtown.

They just don’t want to lose business because of it.

“We love downtown Augusta. We’ve seen a lot of ups and downs with being here, but we’re super excited for the development that they are planning here,” Hansen said.

“I don’t think there’s anyone in Augusta who doesn’t want downtown to be better and more beautiful and more accessible. We would love to see more businesses come here.”

LEARN MORE

By the numbers: Parking in downtown Augusta

1. The question of parking came up less than a month ago at a meeting of Augusta Commission members. The transportation engineering staff told commissioners:
2. There are 760 total parking spots on the surface street, including the recessed parking wells. The number would be about 620 if they were made standard.
3. Most, if not all surface street parking stalls are substandard, causing, among other issues, crooked parking.
4. Officials say the current parking spaces are too narrow, based on current vehicle sizes. They gave a presentation demonstrating that vehicles have gotten larger since the 1990s.
5. Construction plans show 590 street-level parking spaces.
6. There are underutilized spots downtown in four available parking decks, including one that on a recent check only had 15% of spaces used and another that was only 31% full.

One business even hired its own architect to look at improving Augusta with more parking – developing a plan to show local leaders.

News 12 reached out to local officials, and we’re still waiting to hear back.

But there’s a meeting about this that we will continue to follow.

That meeting is at 5 p.m. Wednesday at 5 p.m. at Fat Man’s Cafe on Greene Street.

It’s a time when downtown business owners and others can learn about work timelines and their impacts.

Copyright 2025 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Saturday was National River Cleanup Day, and people in our area stepped up to the plate to help.

Richmond County leaders say they normally do river clean-up events several times a year.

This time, it ironically fell on National River Cleanup Day.

People were out at Lake Olmstead and the Augusta Canal.

The lake was recently restored, and leaders say they used today as an opportunity to make it look even better.

We’ve had about ten people show up so far, which is really good for people that are that dedicated to ship on a Saturday morning to come pick up trash. And so we’ve been very happy with it, and we hope to get a lot of this material out of here and really make a difference in the overall appearance and the function of the lake,” said Wes Byne, director of utilities.

If you want to help clean up our lakes and rivers, you can call the Augusta Utilities Department at 706-821-1851 and find out how you can join the next event.

Copyright 2025 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.