In this week’s Deep Dive, we're taking a look at how
many people are out on the roads in our area, with gas prices high and spring
travel underway. News 12's Kristie Reeter has more based off the Google
Map searches in the area.
In a News 12 poll, New Jersey residents were asked:
Do high gas prices have you rethinking spring and summer travel? In
the state, most said it's not going to have an impact.
Through Google searches, we are able to track the
travel trends and Caleb Silver, with Investopedia, has been looking into
that. What are we seeing?
“All major counties Kristie in New Jersey still well below 2019 levels, 20% or
more,” says Silver. “It's even worse if you look at Morris County down 27%,
Hudson County down 25.4%, Bergen down 24.8%, and Monmouth County down 24.6% so
we are not at full strength when it comes to commuting to work yet."
What impact is high gas prices likely to have on spring and summer travel, and
what are we seeing already in terms of that?
"Also looking at Google
mobility we are looking at where folks are traveling to and from the mall or to
and from recreational areas,” says Silver. “It is improving a lot in New
Jersey, 120% so some improvement especially in the past few weeks, so maybe
folks are ready to get back out on the road as we go into spring and
summer."