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WASHINGTON - If you are excited for the holiday weekend - you are not alone! More than three million people in the D.C. region are expected to take to the roads and to the skies to get out of town. But beware - if you think you have a special trick to beat the traffic blues, others may have that same plan.
AAA Mid-Atlantic estimates this year will be the worst Memorial Day travel weekend in nearly two decades.
"This is the largest number of persons traveling for Memorial Day in the Washington Metro area since we have been keeping records or since 2001," explained John Townsend with AAA Mid-Atlantic. "We are talking one in every five Washingtonians."
Most of those travelers - 87 percent - will be driving.
In an effort to beat the traffic crush, people leave earlier and earlier every year. This year's worst travel time is expected to be on Thursday during rush hour - 3:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.
"They are all going to meet in a commute from hell [at that time]," added Townsend. "I wouldn't wish that commute on my worst enemy."
In Maryland, the biggest trouble will likely be Route 50 headed to the Eastern Shore. The Bay Bridge will also be clogged as people head back into town on Monday.
"That will be absolute misery compounded by agony," Townsend said.
Drivers won't have Maryland Route 450 as a workaround this year either. Crews are still repairing a sinkhole that opened up between A and Eagle Boulevard and Windermere Court.
Virginia drivers won't have it much better. The Interstate 95 corridor is going to be tough, but drivers can keep updated with the Virginia Department of Transportation's Travel Trends map to get real-time road condition updates.
Drivers traveling through Virginia should also keep in mind of surge tolling during peak travel times, which could top record numbers as millions head out of town.