More than 39 million people are expected to hit the road this Memorial Day weekend, which is shaping up to be one of the most expensive on record, from the gas tank to the grill.
While many Americans are eagerly anticipating their first Memorial Day in three years with federal COVID 19 restrictions, experts cautioned consumers to be wary of a different threat: jacked up prices.
The company's annual summer travel survey shows that Americans have been resilient to hitting the road, despite rising prices at the pump, according to Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy, which has continued to set new records ahead of Memorial Day.
GasBuddy's survey found that Memorial Day weekend will be the most popular travel weekend of the summer, but respondents still expressed concerns about the inflation rate that's hit a 40 year high.
There is uncertainty over rising costs due to the soaring inflation. The COVID factor is still present but has been dwarfed by Americans concern about high gas prices and dwindling affordable travel options to make use of the best months of the year, according to De Haan.
A staggering 70% of those surveyed said their summer travel plans have been affected by the historic gas prices, up nearly three times from a year ago.
Ryan Bubrosky, a Connecticut native who paid $5.25 a gallon for regular gasoline at his local station, said I would rather ride my bike than pay these prices.
It is not just gas prices that Americans have to worry about this weekend. The cost of a Memorial Day barbecue will be among the highest in four decades.
The cost of hot dogs and hamburgers, food staples of Memorial Day weekend, is up 6.9% and 14.8% from the previous year, according to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
Propane, which runs roughly 47 million outdoor grills in the United States, is up 26.5% from 2021, an additional 26.5% increase.
Republicans on Capitol Hill pointed out the Biden administration's spending and clean energy policies as the reason for high prices. Senate Minority Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. lambasted the president on the Senate floor this week for comments made by the president at a press conference in Japan suggesting the move away from fossil fuels was an incredible transition According to President Biden, it's all part of what he calls an incredible transition. The Kentucky senator said that's a good way to describe his administration's war on the most affordable, reliable, abundant forms of energy in our country.
The consumer price index is hovering at levels that our economy hasn't seen in four decades. As we head into Memorial Day weekend, the American people have become reluctant experts in its painful, real-life effects. The Republicans are imploring voters to remember the prices they pay this weekend at voting booths in November.
It's shaping up to be a long, hot summer, from the looks of Memorial Day prices. It is now more expensive to take trips, whether to vacation or to buy groceries. With no proposed solutions, Joe Biden and the Democrats only worsen already historic inflation rates, RNC spokeswoman Will O Grady told FOX Business.