What to Know
- AAA is projecting the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday will see an increase in travel — the highest number in more than a dozen years
- About 54.3 million people in the United States are expected to travel 50 miles or more during this year’s thanksgiving holiday
- On Tuesday prior to Thanksgiving from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., travel time from downtown NYC to JFK via LIE is expected to be 1 hour 19 minutes
AAA is projecting the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday will see an increase in travel — the highest number in more than a dozen years.
About 54.3 million people in the United States are expected to travel 50 miles or more during this year’s thanksgiving holiday, which translates to a 4.8 percent or a 2.5 million increase over the last year and the highest rate since 2005, AAA Northeast says.
The Thanksgiving holiday period is from Wednesday, Nov. 21 to Sunday, Nov. 25.
“Higher wages, more disposable income and rising levels of household wealth are fueling a busy holiday travel week” said Robert Sinclair, Jr., AAA Northeast media relations manager.
According to AAA Northeast, the vast majority of travelers, around 48.5 million, will drive this Thanksgiving — an increase of nearly 5 percent compared to last year.
However, the largest growth in holiday travel is by air, which has seen an increase of 5.4 percent, AAA Northeast says.
Local
Meanwhile, 1.48 million passengers will travel via trains, buses and cruises — a 1.4 percent rise, according to the study.
The increase in travelers will mean that travel times in the most congested cities in the country could be as much as four times longer than a normal trip, INRIX, a global traffic data and analytics company, predicts.
New Yorkers will need to pack a lot of patience given that New York City will experience on of the worst airport travel times in the nation, according to INRIX data.
On the Tuesday prior to Thanksgiving from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., travel time from downtown New York City to JFK Airport via the Long Island Expressway East will take about one hour and 19 minutes. Only a trip to O’Hare Airport in Chicago will take longer.
