July 5, 2020–2:33 p.m.
AAA SOUTH
This summer, AAA forecasts Americans will take 700 million trips based on economic indicators and state re-openings.
That number is down nearly 15% compared to last July through September and is the first decline in summer travel since 2009.
AAA booking trends show Americans are making travel plans, though cautiously and more spur of the moment.
Car trips reign supreme accounting for 97% of the favored mode of transportation.
Car trips will also see the smallest decrease in travel volume of just 3% year-over-year.
Air travel will be off by about 74%, while rail, cruise ship and bus travel will slide by 86%.
Were it not for the pandemic, AAA would be projecting 857 million trips during the third quarter, a 3.6% increase over last year.
By this analysis, the pandemic wiped out nearly 150 million person-trips this summer.