If you’re making a last-minute Thanksgiving trip, you won’t be alone

Travelers who waited until the last day to make their Thanksgiving holiday treks need to be prepared for busy highways and the most crowded day yet this week at the nation’s airports.

The Transportation Security istration expected to screen 2.9 million people on Wednesday and more than 3 million Sunday, when many holiday revelers plan to return home.

Georgia is bearing a lot of that load, with more than 4 million fliers expected to the Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, the world’s busiest.

And most Augusta fliers will through there either because they drive there for departure or because they change planes there after leaving out of the local airport.

Air travelers had reason to give thanks — fewer than 50 U.S. flights had been canceled by midafternoon on the East Coast, according to FlightAware.

However, more than 2,000 flights were running late, reflecting the tendency toward tardiness that is becoming normal at U.S. airlines. They were averaging more than 4,500 late flights per day since last weekend, and Wednesday’s count was likely to approach or sur that number by nightfall.

Wednesday afternoon was expected to be the worst time to travel by car, according to forecasters. Drivers headed out of town will be mixing with commuters unlucky enough to be working on the day before the holiday.

BY THE NUMBERS

Thanksgiving: On the road, in the air and by other means

1. 4.2 million people are projected to fly through Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport this week, the top Thanksgiving travel season ever for the busiest airport in the world.
2. Nearly 80 million Americans will venture at least 50 miles from home between Tuesday and next Monday.
3. 71 million of those travelers will go by car.
4. $3.07 is the nationwide average price per gallon of gas, down from $3.26 at this time last year.
5. 18.3 million people will be screened at U.S. airports during the seven-day holiday period. That’s 6% more than during the corresponding days last year.
6. $280 is the average round-trip air fare, which is up 9% from last year.

“This will be the busiest Thanksgiving ever in of air travel,” TSA David Pekoske said. “Fortunately, our staffing is also at the highest levels that they have ever been. We are ready.”

Pekoske said TSA will have enough screeners to keep general security lines under 30 minutes and lines for people who pay extra for PreCheck under 10 minutes.

Timing of holiday shapes travel patterns

Thanksgiving Day takes place late this year, with the fourth Thursday of November falling on Nov. 28. That shortens the traditional shopping season and changes the rhythm of holiday travel.

With more time before the holiday, people tend to spread out their outbound travel over more days, but everyone returns at the same time, said Andrew Watterson, the chief operating officer of Southwest Airlines.

“A late Thanksgiving leads to a big crush at the end — the Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday after Thanksgiving are usually very busy with Thanksgiving this late,” Watterson said.

Airlines did a relatively good job of handling holiday crowds last year, when the weather was mild in most of the country. Fewer than 400 U.S. flights were canceled during Thanksgiving week in 2023 — about one of every 450 flights. So far in 2024, airlines have canceled about 1.3% of all flights.

Combining work and leisure

The rise of remote work also has caused the Thanksgiving travel period to expand, AAA spokesperson Aixa Diaz said.

“The pandemic changed everything,” she said. “What we have seen is that post-pandemic, people are leaving at certain times, perhaps even leaving the weekend before Thanksgiving, working remotely from their destination a couple of days, and then enjoying time with their loved ones.”

Nightmares of Thanksgivings past have further shaped holiday traffic jams. Motorists who learned to avoid traveling the day before and the Sunday after Thanksgiving have created new bottlenecks on other days, according to Diaz.

“Because we warned for so long (that) Wednesday and Sunday are the worst days to travel, people were like, ‘OK, I’m going to leave on Tuesday and come back on Monday to avoid the rush,’” she said. “So now those two days are congested as well.”

Advice for travelers

Airport security officials are pleading with engers to arrive early, not to put lithium-ion batteries in checked bags in case they overheat, and to keep guns out of carry-on bags. TSA has discovered more than 6,000 guns at checkpoints this year, and most of them were loaded.

Holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas bring out many infrequent travelers, and they often have questions about what they can bring on the plane.

TSA has a list on its website of items that are banned or restricted.

By the way, the TSA says it’s OK to bring turkey, stuffing and other favorite holiday foods through airport checkpoints, although liquids such as gravy and cranberry sauce can’t exceed 3.4 ounces.

Just because you can carry it on the plane doesn’t mean you should.

“Especially when it comes to gravy, I wouldn’t want that in my carry-on luggage, and I definitely wouldn’t want it in my checked baggage,” TSA spokesperson Lorie Dankers said.

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