CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Despite a lower recorded number of vehicles on the West Virginia Turnpike during the Memorial Day weekend, the West Virginia Parkways Authority recorded a similar number of travelers throughout the entire week compared to last year.
The state Department of Transportation on Tuesday announced more than 884,000 vehicles passed through the tollbooths of the 88-mile highway between Charleston and Princeton between May 23 and May 30.
Jeff Miller, the executive director of the West Virginia Parkways Authority, said the agency counted 570,000 transactions between May 26 and May 30.
“Those five days, we were actually down compared to 2021,” he said.
“It was about 40,000 less than we were expecting.”
Miller noted an increase of travelers last Monday and Tuesday, saying the change is different from the West Virginia Parkways Authority’s historical trends.
“We were even for the entire week compared to 2021 but for those five days,” he said. “I think, kind of, what that tells me is that I’m hopeful that people are kind of planning their travel around some of the peak times that we experience on the West Virginia Turnpike.”
According to Miller, other factors that may have contributed to the change in the number of travelers include gas prices. AAA on Tuesday reported the average price for a gallon of regular gasoline in West Virginia is around $4.47.
“I don’t expect that it is going to factor in for those who have week-long summer vacations planned, but perhaps some of these weekend getaways that people would tend to do spur of the moment,” he said. “Perhaps, it’s affected those a little bit.”
Traffic was backed up during peak travel times, but Miller said officials reported no major delays during the holiday weekend.