Are you traveling for this holiday weekend? You’ll have some company on the roads and in the air.

AAA says nearly 48 million Americans are planning on going somewhere for Fourth of July. More than 43 million of those are driving, while 3.5 million will be flying.

That’s about a 40% increase from 2020 numbers, but just below the total number of travelers in July 2019.

Ellen Edmonds with AAA says here in Indiana, 1.1 million Hoosiers are planning on going somewhere for the holiday. About 1.2 million traveled for Independence Day in 2019.

“People have been locked down for the last year-and-a-half, and are ready to just get out and have a change of scenery,” Edmonds said.

Nearly 95 percent of Hoosiers are expected to travel will be doing so on the roads.

“We always tell people the first thing you need to be packing is your patience, because traffic is going to be heavy,” Edmonds said.

She says to try to beat the bad traffic jams, the best time to drive is Thursday night and Friday morning. On your way back home, hit the road early Monday morning.

Edmonds also says they are expecting a majority of Hoosier drivers this weekend will be staying within Indiana.

“The reason we think people are opting to drive and maybe travel not too, too far is that they’re comfortable doing that. They’re familiar with the state, they know what’s around. Hoosiers know better than anyone what the best spots are in Indiana.”