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The Thanksgiving Day and Thanksgiving Day Eve have emerged as some of the busiest travel days of the year. While the media shows shots of crowded airports and train stations on the Wednesdays before Thanksgiving (like today), the Bureau of Transportation Statistics says that when personal vehicle travel is included into calculations, "Thanksgiving Day is actually a heavier long-distance travel day [to and from a destination more than 50 or more miles away] than Wednesday," which makes sense - there tons of people who just want to see family just for the day.
Still, the federal government was concerned enough about Thanksgiving holiday travel - and the growing problem of airline and airport delays - to open up military airspace to ease air traffic congestion - there are 3,492 takeoffs and landings at LaGuardia, Newark, and JFK today! Amtrak is expecting 70% more riders today versus a regular Wednesday - and it's a Gridlock Alert Day in the city!
You can check on flight delays by look at the FAA's Flight Delay map (so far, there are half hour delays at LaGuardia - none at Newark or JFK). Lots of people try to avoid the rush by heading out of town early, like leaving yesterday or even taking the whole week off. If you're traveling, let us how your travels - whether by plane, train, bus, or car - were, but either way, we hope you all get to where you're going safely!
Update: Field report from reader Jacob at LaGuardia: "There are more dogs at the airport than the humane society. I've counted at least a dozen. One witless blond even put poor Chloe, her pomeranian complete with Louie Vuitton carrier bag through the xray machine. The screener exclaimed 'Ma'am is that a live animal in the X ray machine?!'"
Photograph of planes in line for takeoff by vidiot on Flickr
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I'm flying out of LaGuardia Thanksigiving morning. Wish me luck! I'm gonna need it!
Good luck! And just be super patient and ignore all the insane people around you.
Thanks! I'm not so worried about the LGA portion. I have to be there super early (7:59AM). I have to connect in Minneapolis at noon. That's the part that worries me.
I fly out of JFK at 5pm today.
I'm leaving earlier then normal, expecting the worst. Guess I'll find out!
Tonight is supposedly one of the biggest nights of the year for bars and nightclubs, up there with St. Patrick's Day, Cinco de Mayo and New Year's Eve.
Tonight is supposedly one of the biggest nights of the year for bars and nightclubs, up there with St. Patrick's Day, Cinco de Mayo and New Year's Eve.
JetBlue terminal at JFK was barely busier than normal around noon on Tuesday. Arriving at the airport to waiting at the gate took ~20 minutes.
The staff was definitely hustling to keep things moving but we left a few minutes late anyhow. Time spent on the tarmac was maybe 10 minutes.
The bonus? We landed 30 minutes early. I think GW opening up military airspace is allowing planes to take faster routes which accounted for the early arrival.
JetBlue terminal at JFK was barely busier than normal around noon on Tuesday. Arriving at the airport to waiting at the gate took ~20 minutes.
The staff was definitely hustling to keep things moving but we left a few minutes late anyhow. Time spent on the tarmac was maybe 10 minutes.
The bonus? We landed 30 minutes early. I think GW opening up military airspace is allowing planes to take faster routes which accounted for the early arrival.
it's raining and snowing here in chicago. good luck gettin through o'hare!
Traveling for Thanksgiviing would turn me into a full-blown alcoholic - I can't think of any other (legal) way to deal with holiday travelers, not to mention my family.
Traveling for Thanksgiviing would turn me into a full-blown alcoholic - I can't think of any other (legal) way to deal with holiday travelers, not to mention my family.
Thank goodness my family is local.
In years past, I've visited in NJ, which either involved NJ Transit on Thanksgiving Day (harrowing during the Penn Station scrum) or renting a car to drive (harrowing in a different way). This year I'm staying at home to suffer a harrowing case of heartburn after stuffing my belly.
You're lucky that you aren't going anywhere, Jen. I wanted to do that but my mother demanded that I come home. Staying home sounds perfect. Have a great belly-stuffing time!
Grand Central this evening was PACKED!. There was barely enough room to walk around.