Thanksgiving Weather, Traffic Outlook Issued For the Hudson Valley

By Patch Staff

As millions of people take to the roads and skies during the week of Thanksgiving, mild weather will continue in much of the East, according to AccuWeather.

Most people traveling over the eastern two-thirds of the nation should not have snow and ice to contend with from Monday through Thanksgiving next week, AccuWeather predicts.

The weather in the East is likely to feature the most favorable travel conditions with sunshine.

Hudson Valley latest holiday forecast

“We’ll have little shots of cold, temporarily replaced by more moderate air masses in the coming week to 10 days… as we enter a more active pattern,” says Bill Potter from Hudson Valley Weather.

The National Weather Service forecast for the beginning of the holiday period includes mostly sunny skies on Wednesday with temps in the upper 40s.

On Wednesday night, temps will fall back into the low to mid 30s statewide, but it will be dry.

On Thanksgiving Day the forecast looks great with mostly sunny skies for the lower Hudson Valleyand temps in the lows 50s.

Once again, no rain is in the forecast next week.

If You’re Flying forecast

If you’re hopping on a plane, there is some weather to keep an eye on, Accuweather predicts.

A southerly flow may cause areas of low clouds and spotty rain or drizzle from parts of Texas to Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota, according to Accuweather. Thunderstorms may begin to develop in parts of Texas and Oklahoma, according to the release.

The vast majority of adverse weather conditions for travelers will be in the western third of the nation, AccuWeather said. Keep an eye on that storm, as its direction will decide whether affected cities would include Seattle, San Francisco, Salt Lake City and Denver, or Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Phoenix.

Historically Low Gas prices

According to the American Automobile Association (AAA), gasoline prices averaging around $2 per gallon could drive an increase in highway travelers this Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving gas prices haven’t been this low in seven years, the AAA said in its 2015 Thanksgiving travel forecast. That may be one of the reasons an estimated 300,000 more people will travel during the holiday period, compared with 2014. The holiday travel period is defined as Wednesday, Nov. 25, to Sunday, Nov. 29.

Holiday travel has been creeping up for the past seven years, and this Thanksgiving, more Americans will travel than at any time since 2007, Marshall Doney, AAA president and CEO, said in a news release.

Of the nearly 47 million Americans who plan to travel for the holiday, 42 million of them will take a road trip, an increase of 0.7 percent over last year. Air travel is expected to increase by 0.1 percent, with 3.6 million Americans flying to their Thanksgiving destination. Other modes of transportation, including cruises, trains and buses, will decrease by 1.4 percent this Thanksgiving to 1.4 million travelers.

Arrive Extra Early at Airports

With airfares down about 10 percent this Thanksgiving, landing an average of $169 per round trip across the top 40 domestic flight routes, the nation’s airports will be busy.

It’s a good idea to arrive early — even earlier than you would have a week ago as airport security tightens after renewed threats from ISIS extremists and last week’s attacks in Paris and Beirut. That concern is likely to translate into longer lines on on Thanksgiving, the top U.S. holiday for travel, analysts say.

“The chances are good that you’re going to see longer waits because of security,” Christopher Elliott, a travel writer and consumer advocate, told Reuters. “If there is another terrorism event, all bets are off then.”

He suggested travelers add another 30 minutes to the time airports advise them to arrive in order to make their flights.

At regional airports, you can check flight departure and arrival times online before heading to the airport.

Links to online flight checks are:

• Check flight times at LaGuardia Airport
• Check on flights at John F. Kennedy International Airport
• Check on flights at Newark Liberty Airport.
• Check on flights at Westchester County Airport.

You can also use a site like Flightstats.com or Flightaware.com.

» Photo by Eric Demarcq / Flickr