Memorial Day in Atlanta this year might get a little messier than you'd expect, with rainstorms and congested roads in the weekend forecast.
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"It's going to be a wet weekend, off-and-on," Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Karen Minton said. "Scattered showers and some storms, it's likely that we'll see both for this weekend."
And according to the American Automobile Association, nearly 42 million Americans are expected to travel over Memorial Day weekend, nearly 5 percent more than last year.
Most travelers will be hitting the roads, including 1.1 million from Georgia.
Using last year's data, AAA and traffic app Waze determined the worst travel times in Atlanta during the three-day weekend.
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The worst days for travel
The AAA reports Thursday, May 24 is the worst day to hit the road, especially between 3:30-5:30 p.m. During this time, you can expect travel delays 1.6 times slower than an average trip.
Waze adds the worst times to drive between Friday, May 25 and Tuesday, May 29:
- Friday between 3-5 p.m.
- Saturday between noon and 2 p.m.
- Sunday between 2-4 p.m.
- Monday between 2-4 p.m.
- Tuesday between 3-5 p.m.
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According to previous Waze data, accidents increase by 19 percent on Friday and policemen alerts (a feature on the app that allows users to share police checkpoints with nearby drivers) increase by 50 percent.
Police alerts also tend to increase by 25 percent Saturday and 30 percent Sunday during the holiday weekend.
If you’re not scheduled to return until Tuesday, be careful of road hazards as they tend to increase by 15 percent in Atlanta on the Tuesday after Memorial Day weekend.
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More Memorial Day stories from The AJC:
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