Traffic at the Mackinac Bridge is down for the eighth year in a row. Currently it is down 2% from last year. Traffic counts in Cadillac and Traverse City also show a decline from the previous year.

State parks have had fewer campers and less out-of-state visitors. Businesses across northern Michigan that count on the summer tourists to keep them open year-round are nervous. The average price of gas in Michigan is currently $3.089. That is $.80 more than drivers were paying one year ago.

Add in the fact that numerous families in Michigan are affected by the flood of job losses our state has been experiencing and you come up with a number that is bad for Michigan’s tourism businesses. Folks here in Michigan simply have less disposable income. You cannot justify long car trips and vacations if that means you go without grocery money or the ability to pay your other bills.

I previously wrote about the tough time that U.P. businesses would be having this year back in April. This was when the average Michigan gas price was $2.79 per gallon.

Via the Traverse City Record Eagle.