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84 million to jam roads for holidays, says AAA

Roadways and airports are likely to be crowded this holiday season.

Roadways and airports are likely to be crowded this holiday season.

AAA is projecting that 93.3 million Americans will travel this year, a 1.6 percent increase from the 91.8 million who hit the road in 2011. Ninety percent of those travelers - 84.4 million people - are expected to drive to their destinations. Air travel is projected to rise 4.5 percent, to 5.6 million travelers.

"The year-end holiday season remains the least volatile of all travel holidays as Americans will not let economic conditions or high gas prices dictate if they go home for the holidays or kick off the New Year with a vacation," AAA Mid-Atlantic spokeswoman Jenny Robinson said in a statement.

While gas prices remain high - gas is averaging about $3.48 a gallon in the Philadelphia region, according to Philly.com's gas prices page - they have continued dropping. A month ago, gas here was averaging $3.66. Nationwide, average gas prices have dropped from $3.46 to $3.29 in the past month.

AAA said it expects gas prices to continue falling through the end of the year. By January, motorists can expect gas prices between $3.20 and $3.40 per gallon.