Photo by Evan Lockridge.

Photo by Evan Lockridge.

Traffic during the upcoming Labor Day holiday is forecast to be the heaviest since 2008, according to a forecast by the motorist group AAA.

It projects 34.7 million Americans will journey 50 miles or more from home Thursday through Monday, a 1.3% percent increase over 2013. Nearly 86.5% of those travelers, 29.7 million, will celebrate the holiday with a final road trip.

Part of the reason for the expected hike, said AAA, is that consumer spending is continuing to rise in spite of stagnant income growth. In the third quarter of this year spending is expected to increase 3.8% year-over-year, while disposable personal income is only expected to increase 1.4%.

“Reliance on credit cards, rather than increasing income, is fueling holiday travel spending this year,” the group said, while it also noted economic growth is slow, consumers are feeling more comfortable taking on debt.

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