Holiday travel may be easier

As our traditional end-of-summer weekend begins, there's light at the end of the tunnel -- on Snoqualmie Pass, at campgrounds and in the gas tank.

Travelers over the Labor Day weekend will find: help in avoiding high traffic areas, an easing of fire restrictions in national forests and a little more coin left after filling up at service stations.

Plus, we're No. 1. (According to the travel service AAA, the most car travelers today through Monday will be in the West, some 7.2 million of us.)

While not as many of us are expected to hit the highways -- AAA predicted about 320,000 fewer Americans than last year will drive more than 50 miles from home on the holiday weekend -- traffic (as well as drivers) could snarl anywhere, so the Washington State Department of Transportation is stepping in to help.

The DOT has set up a Web site for drivers to see how holiday weekend travel on state highways could compare to a typical summer weekend. That's at www.wsdot.wa.gov/Congestion/LaborDay. Current traffic conditions in some areas can be checked at the main site as well.

Worried about construction?

Don't be. The DOT reported that work at most construction sites around the state will be suspended from noon today until Tuesday morning.

Of course, to get there from here (wherever "there" is), the dreaded empty gas tank is threatening. But there's certainly good news compared to the last holiday weekend; over the Fourth of July, the average price for unleaded gasoline was 40 cents more expensive across the state than it is now.

On Thursday, the average gas cost per gallon in Yakima was $3.91, a penny more than the state average.

So, in many ways we can happily head out, which some 34 million Americans will be doing. In this state, "people are looking to do some fairly traditional things, heading to the coast or camping," said Janet Ray from the AAA Bellevue office.

Ray said the most popular destinations this weekend for Washingtonians will be Oregon beaches, Vancouver, Canada, and Yellowstone National Park.

One warning, though. Sgt. Ed McAvoy reported that the Washington State Patrol is adding four extra troopers to patrol the Sunnyside and Yakima areas this weekend.

"We'll be on the look-out, especially for speed and DUIs," McAvoy said. "Our goal is to make sure everyone can arrive safely and enjoy the long holiday weekend."

As for heat of a different kind, those heading out to the woods will find there are no campfire restrictions in most campgrounds in the Wenatchee and Gifford Pinchot national forests.

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