Colorado mountain residents should expect a busy Fourth of July as a record number of people nationwide are expected to travel for the holiday, according to the American Automobile Association.

A record-breaking 72.2 million people will travel for the holiday this year, including 61.6 million people traveling by car, according to AAA. That’s a 2.2% increase from last year.

“We’re seeing record-breaking travel data both nationwide and in Colorado,” said Skyler McKinley, AAA’s regional director of public affairs for Colorado. “That’s surprising for a lot of reasons. There are so many reasons folks could give not to travel: shakiness in the economy, inflation — especially in travel products — uncertainty globally. And yet, folks are traveling in record numbers.”

In addition to drivers, a record number of people nationwide are expected to travel by plane this Fourth of July, with 5.48 million flyers, up about 1.4% from last year, McKinley said. Another 5 million people in the U.S. are expected to travel by bus, train or cruise ship, he said.

Denver is ranked seventh this year among top destinations for U.S. travelers over the Fourth of July, according to AAA booking data. Meanwhile, data from Hertz Car Rental shows Denver International Airport as a top destination for car rentals over the summer holiday weekend.

“Folks aren’t renting cars to stay in Denver,” McKinley said. “They’re renting cars to head to the High Country by way of Interstate 70, by way of Highway 285.”

McKinley said residents and visitors can expect traffic over this holiday period in the usual spots: At the Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnels, getting off I-70 Exit 205 to Silverthorne, along Colorado Highway 9 toward Grand County and the turn to Steamboat Springs, and on Colorado Highway 82 from Glenwood Springs to Aspen.

Drivers should expect “ebbs and flows” in the traffic over the holiday period, McKinley said. He called for people to exercise patience on the roadways, reminding drivers, “You can’t be mad at traffic — you are traffic.”

In the High Country, the bulk of pre-holiday travel was expected to take place Thursday, McKinley said. Sunday and Monday will also be busy travel days as people leave after the holiday, he said.

“There won’t be any days that are quiet,” McKinley said. “The holiday itself will be the quietest, although there will still be traffic. A good rule of thumb is to leave early in the morning to avoid the worst of it.”

One bright spot for travelers this year is that gas prices are down, McKinley said. In Colorado, gas prices are averaging about $3.12 per gallon, compared to $3.31 this time last year, he said.

But drivers headed up to the mountains should know that gas will be more expensive along the I-70 corridor, McKinley said. Gas prices range from about $3.45 to $3.70 per gallon along the mountain corridor with prices as high as $4.65 in places like Pitkin County, he said.

“Mountain communities always pay more for gas because there is just less in the way of competition and there is a great deal of demand,” McKinley said. “You pay for the privilege of filling up in the High Country. So, fill up in the major urban areas and know you’ll pay extra if you’re running out of gas right as you hit Vail.”

Over the Fourth of July holiday last year, AAA helped about 700,000 drivers experiencing maintenance issues — most of which were preventable — on the road, McKinley said. So, he recommended that anyone driving this holiday season check that their car is in working order before hitting the road.

While the large influx of out-of-state visitors and traffic can be frustrating to Colorado residents, McKinley noted that the state’s economy benefits from the visitors.

“Pack your patience,” McKinley said. “One of the great remaining national traditions is grumbling about traffic over the July 4 holiday. It’s as American as apple pie and fireworks. So take a deep breath and remind yourself, there are a lot worse places to be stuck in traffic than the Colorado High Country.”