The end of Thanksgiving week is setting the stage for a travel crescendo in Chicago and across the nation, with Sunday anticipated to be the busiest day. As travelers converge on airports and highways, the Transportation Security Administration is prepping to screen over three million people, potentially marking a new single-day high for U.S. air passenger volume. Those planning to take to the skies are urged to arrive at airports two hours in advance for domestic flights and three hours for international, as the surge in post-holiday traffic is expected to significantly increase wait times.
Getting an early start may just be the best strategy to circumvent the bustle, especially in Chicago, where O'Hare International Airport saw an influx of early morning traffic. TSA officials recommend arriving two to three hours early, and it's become evident why. According to WGN-TV, with over 2,300 flights scheduled at O'Hare, only a handful of cancellations and delays have marred an otherwise efficient Sunday morning. Meanwhile, those opting for the road should heed advice from AAA, which indicates that navigating the traffic before 1 p.m. can help to altogether avoid the afternoon gridlock.
The travel trend is consistent with the entire Thanksgiving period, which auto club AAA suggests will go down as one of the busiest on record. In conjunction with transportation analytics firm INRIX, the worst days for road travel during the Thanksgiving week were predicted, with Wednesday, November 27, crowned as the peak for travelers. Indeed, as NBC Chicago reports, experts advised motorists to start their journeys before 10 a.m. on the Wednesday preceding Thanksgiving to sidestep the busiest traffic window between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. that day.
Tranquility on the thoroughfares returned, albeit briefly, on Thanksgiving Day, noted as the period with the least traffic, providing some reprieve amidst the holiday hustle. As the week drew to a close, roadways once again burgeoned with vehicles, corroborated by one traveler's experience. "My God, that traffic out there? You better leave three hours early, because it's bad. Other than that, it wasn't that bad on the expressway. It's just as soon as you get here, traffic," Alexis Kyles told WGN-TV before her departure from O'Hare to warmer climes. With these trends, Sunday's close of the Thanksgiving week showcases the American penchant for movement—as the nation collectively ventures forth, back to routine or towards the vestiges of holiday leisure.
