Labor Day travel: Chicago drivers face traffic and rain as holiday getaways begin

CHICAGO - With Labor Day weekend being a popular time for road trips, the open road was calling Friday as drivers packed up their trailers and mobile homes, taking the highway out of Chicago.

There was heavy rain at the beginning of the holiday weekend, especially going north towards Wisconsin. And heavy traffic will continue to be an issue throughout the weekend. AAA said record numbers of people have a trip planned.

However, gas prices are making it more affordable to spend the last summer holiday having fun.

Christopher Shaw packed his truck for a Labor Day tradition, camping in Tigerton, Wisconsin.

"Me and about 25 other people, about four or six other families, so we got like 20 kids," Shaw said. "Just hanging on the river and enjoy ourselves there, play darts. So I load up my whole car, I got everything, got a tent, poles to walk in the river because I’m an old man. It will be lovely, 77 degrees each day."

Drivers stopped at the Lake Forest oasis on Friday to fuel up and walk the dog before settling in for the long ride.

Fei Shang is driving from Wisconsin to Toronto with his wife, child and dog.

"We’re driving from Wisconsin up to here, it’s okay," Shang said. "There are several like, crashes on the road, but it’s still okay so far. It’ll be like around 10 hours. We enjoy road trips during the summertime. The rain, not the rain, not the part I like, no."

Traffic is expected to be heavy Friday afternoon. AAA recommends driving early in the day, except Saturday, when a lot of people will be on the road before noon.

The holiday travel period for driving extends to Tuesday.