Summer Travel Season Heating Up, AAA Says

    BELLEVUE, Wash., May 18 Despite the sluggish economy and
increasing gasoline prices, travel during the upcoming Memorial Day holiday
may surpass last year's record volume, AAA reports.
    Over 34.2 million Americans are expected to travel 50 miles or more from
home this holiday weekend, up less that 1 percent from last year's
34.1 million. Of the 34.2 million travelers, 28.5 million people are planning
to travel by motor vehicle.
    Car travelers can expect higher prices at the pump this holiday weekend.
The average price of self serve regular unleaded gasoline is $1.554 per gallon
in western and central Washington, a 6.1-cent increase since Easter, but a
1.7-cent decrease since last Memorial Day.


      Area by Area Comparison of Self-serve Regular Unleaded Fuel Prices

      City                        Memorial Day     Easter     Memorial Day
                                       2001         2001          2000
      Bellingham                      1.558        1.542         1.568
      Bremerton                       1.532        1.456         1.563
      Olympia                         1.509        1.444         1.549
      Renton                          1.552        1.542         1.598
      Seattle/Bellevue/Everett        1.618        1.564         1.643
      Tacoma                          1.540        1.490         1.562
      Tri-Cities                      1.567        1.460         1.526
      Vancouver                       1.523        1.472         1.554
      Wenatchee                       1.575        1.512         1.603
      Yakima                          1.568        1.449         1.544
      Averages                        1.554        1.493         1.571


    AAA Washington provides more than 657,000 members in western and central
Washington a full range of products and benefits, including travel agencies,
personal lines insurance agencies, a range of auto-related services, and
member discounts on many consumer products and services. A not-for-profit
organization, AAA Washington also assists travelers through its highway and
transportation safety and legislative advocacy programs.  More information
about AAA Washington is available on the company's website at http://www.aaawa.com.

    CONTACT:  Janet Ray, 425-646-2058, or Jennifer Harbison, 425-646-2055,
both of AAA Washington.

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