Like the drone of Christmas music in the mall, the advice is easy to tune out and dismiss. Yeah, yeah, got it, got it.
But there are 98.6 million reasons to pay attention. That's the number of travelers expected to be journeying at least 50 miles from their homes during the Christmas and New Year's holidays, a season that runs through Jan. 4, according to AAA. That's a 4.2 percent increase from last year and the biggest increase in holiday travelers since 2009.
The recession is clearly in our rearview mirrors, the economy is recovering and gas is at its lowest price in five years. All of which equals a more affordable road trip to the homes of grandparents and others we love and under whose trees we hope are gifts bearing our names.
And that's the way most of us traveling during the next week and a half or so will go — by car.
So the advice is worth repeating — and heeding: Buckle up, set aside plenty of time to get there, don't sweat it if it's slow-going and you realize you're going to be a little later than expected, resist the urge to speed, pay attention to the heavier-than-normal volume of vehicles around you, and if you plan to drink, find someone else to drive.
Anyone who needs an attention-jolting reminder of the importance of driving carefully can recall that last year, 178 people were injured in 131 vehicle accidents in Minnesota over the Christmas and New Year's holidays, according to the Minnesota Department of Public Safety. That was one person injured and one more holiday marred every 20 minutes or so during Christmas and New Year's.
So if you're traveling, take the advice to drive carefully, even if it's something you've heard a million times before and even if it's as easy to dismiss as ripped-off wrapping paper.
