Round Rock Thanksgiving Travel: Tips On Lowest Gas Prices, More

ROUND ROCK, TX — First, the bad news: Nearly 51 million people nationwide are expected to travel for Thanksgiving — the highest level in a dozen years. What this means, of course, is traffic congestion and attendant headaches stemming from them.

This is for the Thanksgiving weekend, loosely defined as Wednesday, Nov. 22, through Sunday, Nov. 26. The big day, as you know, is Thursday, Nov. 23. But with a little planning, you can make your holiday relatively free of stress and save a few bucks on gas at the same time.

The good news: The weather is expected to be ideal for travel, with sunshine in abundance, unseasonably warm temperatures and no rain chances through the weekend.

Related story: Unseasonably Warm Thanksgiving Day Forecast For Austin Area

In Texas, nearly 4 million residents are expected to travel more than 50 miles to their Thanksgiving Day destinations, according to AAA. That's an increase of 3 percent over last year. Most of those travelers — 89 percent, all told — will be taking a road trip.

“Drivers should plan ahead, create alternate routes, and be sure their vehicle is up to date on all maintenance before hitting the road to avoid breakdowns and delays,” AAA Texas spokesperson Daniel Armbruster said in a news release in offering helpful advice.

As a result, travel times may be more than three times longer than expected, according to AAA Texas.

Bob Pishue, a transportation analyst at INRIX, minces no words in his own press release: “Thanksgiving has historically been one of the busiest holidays for road trips, and this year we could see record-level travel delays,” he wrote.

To keep up with local trouble spots, Patch suggests use of the Twitter page dubbed Total Traffic and Weather Network. There, you will find exquisitely detailed documentation of accidents, logjams and weather-related closures and backups. The site continually updates its tweeted reports, yielding a handy guide alerting drivers on which roads are best left not taken.

As for gas prices, we recommend use of the GasBuddy.com tracker to gauge where you might find the cheapest fuel. According to the site, the average price of gas in Round Rock is $2.24 per gallon with the lowest price found at $2.01 per gallon. That average is slightly less than the $2.26 of gas per gallon statewide.

If you haven't fueled up for your holiday travel, you might want to do it sooner than later. Motorists will be paying their highest prices in three years to fill their tanks this week, according to GasBuddy. The average U.S. price for a gallon of gas on Thanksgiving Day is projected to be $2.53 a gallon, the highest since gas hit $2.79 a gallon in 2014, GasBuddy officials said.

Gas prices already have risen 9 cents in the last month, which the company categorized as "...the largest pre-Thanksgiving Day increase since 2007.”

As of Tuesday afternoon, the lowest gas prices in Round Rock could be found at the following fueling stations:

• Exxon, 800 Louis Henna Blvd. and A.W. Grimes Boulevard, $2,13 per gallon.
• Murphy Express, 1600 Round Rock Ave. at Deepwood Drive, $2.13 per gallon.
• Shell, 2881 Red Bud Lane and Gattis School Road, $2.14 per gallon.
• Murphy USA, 4700 E. Palm Valley Blvd. and North Red Bud Lane, $2.14 per gallon.
• Circle K, 900 Louis Henna Vlvd and A.W. Grimes Boulevard, #2.14 per gallon.

As we learned during our Hurricane Harvey coverage, it's a good idea to call the gas station you've identified as having low gas prices first to make sure the price point is still intact and/or they have supply left. GasBuddy.com officials strive to provide real-time prices but that can be difficult to achieve. Still, the site offers a handy guide for empowered consumers.

While you're focused on traveling, make sure you service your vehicle before heading out. At the very least, have emergency supplies and a good spare tire in the trunk. Why? AAA officials predict they will have rescued 330,000 stranded motorists this Thanksgiving season.

That's a lot of stuff to assimilate, we know. Just plot your route out carefully, be hooked into technology that can help save time and money, and breathe deep cleansing breaths. Do all of this things and you can be assured of having a Happy Thanksgiving!

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