Chicago airports expecting influx of travelers for Labor Day weekend
CHICAGO (CBS) — Chicago airports are expecting an influx of travelers heading out of town for the Labor Day weekend.
Millions across the country are packing planes, trains, and automobiles in a mad dash to their final summer destinations Friday morning.
This could be a record-breaking weekend for O'Hare International Airport. A total of 1.4 million people are expected to pass through the airport between Thursday, Aug. 29 and Tuesday, Sept. 3, a 10% increase from last year, making it one of the busiest travel weekends in the airport's history. However, the busiest travel day of the weekend isn't expected until Monday, when more than 270,000 people will travel through the airport.
Officials at Midway International Airport said Friday will be its busiest travel day of the weekend, with 58,000 people expected. Overall, 306,000 people are expected to travel through Midway over the entire Labor Day weekend.
Experts say most airports will be busiest before 1 p.m. on Friday.
AAA says those who are taking the roads on Friday should head out before noon or after 7 p.m.
"With kids back in school, people are really taking regional trips. You're seeing a lot of road trips, people staying close to home," said Tiffany Wright, AAA director of public affairs.
Gas prices have dropped for the last four weeks in a row. The national average is $3.36 a gallon, almost 50 cents lower than last year. The current average in Illinois is $3.07 per gallon.