Springfield, Va. - Americans have so much to be thankful for this holiday season, but one thing on everyone's list this year is lower gas prices. Last year at this time it cost a dollar more per gallon to fill a gas tank, and this past summer at oil prices' peak, it cost more than two dollars more. "It makes it much easier to travel by [car] because the gas prices have lowered," said Virginia resident Christina Garcia. "I'm looking forward to going home."

The Wednesday before Thanksgiving is notoriously one of the biggest travel days of the entire year, and while AAA expects fewer people from D.C. and its suburbs will be traveling long distances this year, the low gas prices won't make the roads barren.

At the gas pump, many are excited about the low gas prices and are hoping the downward trend continues, including Deborah Caffey, who's traveling to Georgia for the holiday. "And I heard that the further south you go, the cheaper it gets, so we're loving it... if the gas prices were still really high we probably wouldn't go, but two and lower, it's time to go," she said.

A gas station in Woodbridge Wednesday morning was selling regular gas for $1.67 a gallon, and prices are indeed lower as travelers head south.

The AAA forecast said 765,400 Washington area residents will travel at least 50 miles from home, but that's down 1.5 percent from last year. AAA spokesman Mahlon Anderson said the projection is showing the first decline since 2002.

Traffic is one concern for those hitting the roads for the holiday; Jim Kowall, who is stopping off in the area on his trip from New Jersey to Miami, notes, "Well, I've been two hours in traffic since Baltimore." But Maryland and Virginia will be temporarily suspending road construction projects starting Wednesday to help with traffic congestion.

Bel Air resident Jerry D'Angelo is traveling with his wife and four kids to North Carolina. He said his patience with the traffic is wearing thin. "As soon as we got to D.C. on 95 it's been absolutely miserable," he said.

About 611,000 will be traveling by car. Another 106,000 will be flying, but that projection is down 8.6 percent from 2007. Other modes of travel, including buses and trains, are expected to be busier than last year.

At D.C.'s Union Station, there are long lines, full trains, and plenty of extra security, as an estimated 128,000 people will board trains on Wednesday. In fact, Amtrak reports many of its northeast corridor trains are sold out, and the same will probably go for Thanksgiving day.

"I actually tried to leave yesterday, when I showed up all the tickets for yesterday were sold out, so i had to purchase a ticket for today, said traveler Jordan Leverett. "My parents are a little mad at me that I'm 24 hours late."

The traffic doesn't seem to bother everyone, however. Greyhound passenger Renee Easterling said she's looking forward to traffic on her ride to Richmond. "I like traffic, i can sit down and think, sleep, do whatever i want, traffic's good," she said. 

The Koebel family is one of those on the road this Thanksgiving; they are embarking Wednesday on a ten-hour journey north from Fredericksburg to see family. Dale Koebel explains, "We got up at about 4:30 this morning, finally got on the road by 5:30." And Julie Koebel adds, "rough -- the three-year-old has an issue getting up early."