(File photo of United States Flag)

(AP) In what had long been celebrated every May 30 to honor America’s fallen soldiers, Memorial Day officially became a federal holiday in 1971, observed on the last Monday in May.

Businesses increasingly have chosen to stay open, leading to what is now one of the biggest retail sales and travel weekends of the year.

Here’s what is open and closed this year on Memorial Day:

GOVERNMENT BUILDINGS

Government offices, post offices, courts and schools are closed.

BANKS AND MARKETS

U.S. stock markets and banks are closed Monday.

Most FedEx and UPS pickup and delivery services will also not be available on Memorial Day, though some special services will be accessible.

RETAILERS

Warehouse membership club Costco will be closed on Memorial Day, but the vast majority of retailers will be open, with many trying to lure customers with big promotional sales. Hours may vary by location.

TRAVEL

Memorial Day is also considered the unofficial opening of the summer travel season. Americans are expected to get away in record numbers over the long Memorial Day weekend even as economic and technical worries rattle the U.S. travel industry.

Auto club AAA projects that more than 45 million people — 1.4 million more than last year — will venture at least 50 miles from their homes between Thursday and Monday, with the vast majority going by car. The holiday’s previous domestic travel record of 44 million people was set 20 years ago.

AAA’s fuel tracker shows motorists can expect to pay less for gasoline this year. The U.S. average price on Wednesday was $3.18 for a gallon of regular gas compared to $3.60 a year ago.

AAA projects 39.4 million people will travel by car over the weekend — the highest number for that holiday since AAA began tracking it in 2000 — and that another 3.61 million people will travel by air, a nearly 2% increase over last year’s 3.55 million.

Air safety has been on the minds of travelers after a midair collision in January of a passenger jet and a U.S. Army helicopter above Washington, D.C. killed 67 people. There have also been some close calls.

In recent weeks, flight delays and cancellations stemming from an air traffic controller shortage and equipment failures at a facility that directs aircraft in and out of the Newark, New Jersey, airport have also made some people reluctant to get on a plane.

(File Photo of Road Construction Ahead Sign)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Rochester, PA) PennDOT District 11 announced that beginning Tuesday, May 27th, weather permitting, Route 68 in Rochester will be closed for a project for roadwork improvement. Starting at 8 a.m. on Tuesday and going continuously through the middle of October, a part of Virginia Avenue will close to traffic that is long-term between Jefferson Street and Sunflower Road. According to a release from PennDOT District 11, here are the detours for drivers during this work:

Posted Car Detours

South of the Closure

• From Adams Street, turn left onto New York Avenue
• Bear right onto Harmony Avenue
• Harmony Avenue becomes Pennsylvania Avenue
• Turn right onto Grant Street
• Turn left onto Virginia Avenue
• Turn right onto Marion Hill Road
• Follow Marion Hill Road back to Route 68 (Sunflower Road)
• End detour

North of the Closure

• Same detour in the opposite direction

Posted Truck Detours

South of the Closure

• From the Rochester Roundabout, take Brighton Avenue toward North 18/65
• From Brighton Avenue bear left onto West Madison Street
• Turn right onto Delaware Avenue (Route 18)
• From northbound Route 18, turn right onto 13^th Street
• 13^th Street becomes Marion Hill Road
• Follow Marion Hill Road back to Route 68 (Sunflower Road)
• End detour

North of the Closure

• From Route 68 (Sunflower Road), turn onto Marion Hill Road
• Marion Hill Road becomes 13^th Street
• Turn left onto southbound Route 18 (3^rd Avenue)
• Take the left-hand ramp to Route 68 toward (Beaver/Rochester)
• From southbound Route 18 (Delaware Avenue), turn left onto West Madison Street
• Bear right onto Brighton Avenue
• Follow Brighton Avenue to the Rochester Roundabout
• From the roundabout, take Adams Street toward East 68
• End detour

(File Photo)

Pittsburgh, PA – PennDOT District 11 is announcing slide remediation work on Big Sewickley Creek Road (Route 4036) in Economy Borough, Beaver County will begin Tuesday, May 27 weather permitting.

Beginning at approximately 7 a.m. on Tuesday, Big Sewickley Creek Road will close to traffic between Maude Davis Lane and Zassick Drive continuously through mid-June. Crews will conduct slide repair, drainage improvements, and shoulder reconstruction. Traffic will be detoured.

Posted Detour

East of the Closure

• From Big Sewickley Creek Road, turn onto Conway Wallrose Road
• Turn left onto southbound Route 989
• Turn right onto Hemmerle Road
• Hemmerle Road becomes Legionville Road
• Turn left onto Duss Avenue
• Turn right onto 8^th Street
• Turn left onto Route 65
• Turn left onto Cross Street
• Cross Street becomes Main Street
• Bear right onto Ambridge Avenue
• Ambridge Avenue becomes Big Sewickley Creek Road
• End detour

West of the Closure

• Same detour in the opposite direction

PennDOT crews will conduct the work.

Motorists can check conditions on major roadways by visiting www.511PA.com. 511PA, which is free and available 24 hours a day, provides traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information and access to more than 1,000 traffic cameras. 511PA is also available through a smartphone application for iPhone and Android devices, by calling 5-1-1, or by following regional X alerts.

Subscribe to PennDOT news and traffic alerts in Allegheny, Beaver, Lawrence counties at www.penndot.pa.gov/District11.

Information about infrastructure in District 11, including completed work and significant projects, is available at www.penndot.pa.gov/D11Results. Find PennDOT’s planned and active construction projects at www.projects.penndot.gov.

Find PennDOT news on X, Facebook and Instagram.

(Photo Provided with Release Courtesy of the Community College of Beaver County)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Monaca, PA) According to a release from the Community College of Beaver County, CCBC has been named a recipient of the prestigious 2025 Pathfinder Award. This award was given at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center on May 8th by the Green Building Alliance after CCBC teamed up with Mascaro Construction Company. The award was received because CCBC has used the Mascaro Construction Institute to prepare future designers, green builders and managers.