Holiday Turnpike count low Reports mixed on effect of higher gasoline prices

With gasoline prices in Maine well on their way to the $4 a gallon mark, fewer people were traveling into the state over the Labor Day weekend, which may signal a trend for the fall tourism season.

The Maine Turnpike Authority reported an 8 percent year-to-year drop in people headed north to the state on Friday, and reports throughout the region were mixed regarding the impact of higher gas prices.

“Usually, our vacancy board is full this time of year,” said Annabelle Robbins, owner of the Acadia Information Center in Trenton. “We’ve got vacancies in all areas now. The people who are coming in are looking for places that aren’t too expensive, maybe to make up for what they spent on gas.”

Preliminary figures from the Maine Turnpike Authority this weekend indicated that the number of northbound motorists traveling through the York toll plaza was down significantly.

Hourly counts taken between noon and 9 p.m. Friday showed that 34,276 vehicles passed through the tollbooths, compared with 37,093 last year. That is a decrease of about 8 percent, MTA spokesman Dan Paradee said.

The drop was even sharper Saturday when counts were taken between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. This year, 21,863 vehicles passed through the toll plaza compared with 27,007 in 2004, a decrease of about 15 percent.

“You can’t look at these numbers and not think that something unusual is going on,” Paradee said. “And you have to be concerned about that coming into the fall.”

The higher gasoline prices are not significant enough to prompt committed travelers to reconsider their plans, according to AAA Northern New England spokesman Matthew McKenzie.

Filling up a tank of gas may have been $20 cheaper a year ago, he said last week, but that $20 difference is not enough to keep people at home on a holiday.

“If people have plans and reservations, they’re going to hit the road,” McKenzie said.

That may be so, but reports from around the region have been mixed, and some people apparently are staying home because of gas prices.

Janey Whitney at the Villager Motel in Bar Harbor said she has received several cancellations from guests who cited the high price of gas as a reason.

“Now, maybe they were going to cancel anyway, and they just used that as an excuse,” Whitney said, “but we’ve definitely lost some people because of it.”

Bus tours booked before the spike in fuel costs will help the 63-unit motel and others to weather the storm. Still, the price of gas will be a factor in the coming months, she said.

“The price of gas is going to be an issue, and it’s going to hurt us all. Let’s face it,” she said.

Meanwhile, across the bay in Rockport, the Samoset Resort has not felt an effect from rising gas prices, according to General Manager Connie Russell. Occupancy has been high all summer, and the resort has had no cancellations from guests citing the high gas prices nor have guests cut their holiday visits short, Russell said Monday.

It is difficult to forecast what will happen this fall, he said.

“Booking patterns have changed since 9-11,” he said. “Most people now wait to the last minute, so it’s hard to gauge what’s going to happen.”

Those interested in the outdoors seemed to continue with their activities over the holiday weekend despite fuel prices. Both Baxter State Park and Acadia National Park reported busy weekends.

Although there has been some decline in the number of campers at Baxter State Park this summer, that has not been the case this weekend, according to interim Director Jensen Bissell.

“The park was filled to capacity with campers, and we were expecting it to be busy with day use,” Bissell said Sunday.

Cancellations are a normal part of doing business, but there was no indication that they were tied to the high price of gas, according to Bissell.

Activity also was high at Acadia National Park .

“It’s been a pretty busy weekend. Even Monday is busier than I remember Monday being,” said Jane Boynton at the park’s main entrance booth. “It’s been quite busy, and I’ve got a line of traffic in front of me right now.”

A lot of cars came through the park, Boynton said, and many of them were out-of-state vehicles, she said.