Thanksgiving travel numbers are projected to be about 10{e9f0aada585b9d73d0d08d3c277fd760092386ec23cac37d50f4b8cd792b062a} higher than last year.
Triple A representatives are saying that roads will be particularly busy on Wednesday November 24th. The Wednesday before Thanksgiving is traditionally the busiest travel day of the year.
Here are some tips if you plan to travel this week.
Triple A representatives and the director of the Erie International Airport said that the demand for travel is high this Thanksgiving as many families did not gather last year.
Airports and roads will be busy this Thanksgiving. The director of the Erie International Airport said that the airlines are operating five daily departures including two flights to Chicago, two flights to Charlotte, and one flight to Washington DC.
“Instead of 50 passengers per plane, it is up to 76 passengers. So more people are getting the opportunity to fly out of the Erie Airport this holiday season,” said Derek Martin, Director of the Erie International Airport.
Martin said that most flights are fully booked on these larger American Airline planes. He recommends getting to the airport early.
“Especially when we have multiple flights going out at the same time in the airport. So if you have two flights within a half an hour, you’ve got basically 135 people trying to go through security on time. So it is better to get there early,” said Martin.
One representative from Triple A said that there is a high demand for travel this Thanksgiving as many families were unable to gather last year.
“53.4 million people will travel this Thanksgiving. These travel numbers are 13{e9f0aada585b9d73d0d08d3c277fd760092386ec23cac37d50f4b8cd792b062a} higher than 2020 and were almost back to pre-pandemic levels in 2019 within 5{e9f0aada585b9d73d0d08d3c277fd760092386ec23cac37d50f4b8cd792b062a},” said Lynda Lambert, Spokesperson for AAA East Central.
Lambert said that roads will be particularly busy the day before Thanksgiving. Wednesday November 24th will be busy particularly between noon and 8 p.m.
“If you can leave super early or maybe try to leave after 8 p.m. and then the same thing would apply to Sunday. Get up and get out as early as you can or wait and stay an extra day if you can,” said Lambert.
Today’s national average for gas prices is $3.40. Local gas prices are about 20 cents above the national average.
However, one spokesperson from Triple A said that high gas prices typically do not prevent families from getting on the road to attend Thanksgiving gatherings.
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