This Is The Worst Time For Thanksgiving Travel In NYC: AAA

NEW YORK, NY — If you’re one of the 53.4 million Americans planning to travel this Thanksgiving, it’s probably best to get a jump on it as soon as possible, because you definitely won’t want to travel on Wednesday.

The AAA projects that Thanksgiving travel will rebound to within 5% of pre-pandemic, 2019 levels, and nationwide Thanksgiving travel is up 13% from 2020, a new report projects. As usual, the AAA expects the Wednesday afternoon before the holiday to be the absolute worst time to travel anywhere in the country, as throngs of commuters leave work early to brave the congested roads.

However, thanks to aggregations of anonymous car GPS data, AAA is able to pinpoint the worst time and place for Thanksgiving travel in the Tri-State Area: on Wednesday from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m., avoid at all costs the Queens stretch of the Long Island Expressway, specifically from Borden Avenue in Long Island City to the Little Neck Parkway in Little Neck. AAA predicts that the stretch of I-495 East will see 482% more traffic than it normally does during that time frame - which is never a bargain to begin with.

What’s more, AAA Northeast Senior Manager of Public Affairs Robert Sinclair told Patch that AAA is predicting 400,000 vehicle breakdowns nationwide among just AAA members, further exacerbating gridlock.

All on a holiday when people are supposed to express their gratitude.

Sinclair’s recommendation for the best time to beat the congestion may surprise you: Thanksgiving Day. “Based on personal experience, I tell everybody on Wednesday night to get a good night’s sleep, wake up early, 5 or 6 a.m., and hit the road then,” he said. “If you have a two-hour trip, and you leave at 6 a.m., you’d still have plenty of time for the holiday, and traffic will be a lot lighter.”

Assuming you make it to your destination in one piece, there’s still the trip home. Sinclair said that 6 p.m. to midnight Sunday will see the worst traffic “anywhere there are cars.”

Although AAA estimates that 90% of Americans will drive to their destinations, its report predicts that anywhere with planes is likely to be just as bad. 4.1 million people are expected to travel by air this Thanksgiving, an 80% increase over 2020. Sinclair said that these numbers do not take into account the fact that airports are now open to vaccinated travelers from 33 foreign countries, jamming airports even further.

The worst, most expensive day to fly will be Wednesday, while the Monday before Thanksgiving will be far lighter and cheaper.

Furthermore, AAA expects people traveling by trains, buses, and cruises to jump more than 264%, to 1.5 million people.

But there’s a bit of good news for New Yorkers: the MTA reports that its ridership is still lingering at around half of its pre-pandemic ridership. To ease Thanksgiving congestion on Wednesday, the MTA will offer 12 extra Long Island Rail Road trains, which will depart Penn Station from 12:45 to 4:15 p.m. on Wednesday. Metro-North will also offer 10 additional “early getaway trains” on all of its lines that will depart Grand Central from 12:05 to 3:05 p.m. Wednesday.

The MTA is also offering free Q70 bus rides from Tuesday, Nov. 23 to Sunday, Nov. 28 to facilitate travel to LaGuardia Airport.

MTA Bridges and Tunnels will also suspend temporary daytime lane closures due to construction from Wednesday, Nov. 24 to Monday, Nov. 29.

To help cope with the holiday rush and maintain some modicum of the Thanksgiving spirit, AAA recommends arriving at least 2 hours early to airports, making sure your cars have been inspected, and considering purchasing travel insurance.

Related:
Thanksgiving Travel Will Rebound To Pre-Pandemic Levels: AAA