Thanksgiving is usually one of the busiest travel holidays of the year, but economic worries will keep more people home this Thanksgiving, even as gas prices continue to drop.
AAA Motor Club says about 8,000 fewer people will be traveling on the road or by airplane in South Carolina this Thanksgiving.
The drop in travel is the first since 2002, despite gas prices being more than a dollar cheaper than they were last Thanksgiving.
Still, Highway Patrol will be at full manpower this weekend, keeping an eye out for drunk or distracted drivers.
"Show a presence, so drivers continue to drive as they're supposed to, responsibly, driving with seat belts on," said Trooper Sonny Collins of the S.C. Highway Patrol.
At Myrtle Beach International Airport, Christopher Toney and his two brothers found a short wait for their flight back to Detroit. They thought they'd have to fight a big crowd.
"Yeah, I did. I thought it was going to be a lot of people traveling, but it's like because of the economy that people are not traveling," Toney said.
At mid-day on what would normally be one of the busiest days of the year at the airport, security lines were short and check-in times, brief.
"I thought it was going to be a lot busier than it is right now, that's for sure," said Jennifer Mills, who was flying to Pittsburgh for the holiday.
One airline employee in Myrtle Beach said air travel is the slowest he's seen in 14 years, though for passengers, the lack of a long wait was just fine.
"Yes, yeah, definitely, it's kind of surprising, that's why I got here so early," said passenger Crystal Chandler.
Many airlines offered last minute discounts, but the Air Transport Association still expects the number of passengers nationwide to decline ten percent this Thanksgiving.
Travel experts say it may take until after the first of the year before airlines know if their recent fare reductions will put more people on planes.
AAA says 41 million Americans will be traveling this holiday, down about 600,000 from last year.
