All Things Travel: Records Could Be Broken
BOSTON (CBS) - Forget Black Friday, as people in Massachusetts get ready for White Wednesday and the first major snowstorm of the year.
The predicted storm is forcing people to change their plans to travel Tuesday, already one of the busiest travel days of the year. New travel records will likely be set.
Wednesday has traditionally been hailed as the busiest travel day of the year. In recent times, Tuesday has taken over that honor, spurred on by more car and bus traffic as classes end at local colleges.
The first snow of the year always slows down traffic and six-to-twelve inches is expected beyond Route 128 and the Massachusetts Turnpike heading west.
Northeast U.S airports are expected to be impacted Tuesday as more than 50,000 people travel through Logan Airport.
Flights will be cancelled or delayed both Tuesday and Wednesday. Many airlines have announced policies where passengers will not be charged extra, if they can get an earlier flight.
Returning passengers will make next Sunday and Monday peak air travel days in Boston.
Thanksgiving week is one of the busiest for taxis leaving the Boston airport.
In the seven day period starting Tuesday, about 40,000 cabs will be dispatched from Logan. Last week, the taxi pool at the airport was relocated to a space close to the consolidated rental car building and closer to the airline terminals.
The busiest transportation site per square foot will be the bus terminal at South Station as classes end Tuesday for many students heading home. The number of bus passengers in Boston may total 25,000 this one day for all carriers. The private companies will be adding extra buses as demand rises.
Peter Pan Bus Company of Springfield estimates that they will carry a million student passengers this year.
Amtrak expects sold out trains on the northeast corridor for the next two days leaving South Station.
Drivers will certainly try and get a jump on the storm. Sixty-five percent of Thanksgiving travel will be done by automobile. Lower gas prices may increase that figure.
The Massachusetts Department of Transportation held a briefing at their South Boston Command Center where they hoped travelers would either leave early or late and avoid peak times starting about 3 p.m.
With advance warning, MassDOT was confident that they could stay ahead of the snow.
The major problem intersections were expected to be on the MassPike at the Sturbridge exits heading west and major connecting roads on Interstates 93 and 95.
Acting MassDOT Secretary Frank DePaola advised driving slower because of heavy traffic and potentially bad weather conditions.
A trip out to the MassDOT media event by the MBTA Silver Line on Monday found standing room only at 3 p.m. Free Silver Line service from Logan Airport downtown has proved very popular with more buses needed as the Boston waterfront grows.
Bob Weiss reports on business travel on Mondays at 5:55 a.m. on WBZ NewsRadio 1030.
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