Many Thanksgiving Travelers Leaving Just Before The Big Rush
Jericka Duncan reports...
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - The day before Thanksgiving is one of busiest travel days of the year. From the Philadelphia area alone 468,000 people are expected to be taking to the skies, riding the rails or hitting the roads for trips of 50-miles or more according to AAA. They also are expecting a 3.5 percent increase in travel from this time last year.
KYW's Jim Melwert went to 30th Street Station early Tuesday morning to get a gauge on travelers trying to beat the usual Wednesday before Thanksgiving rush.
One of them was Dave who was making his way from New York to visit family in Washington D.C.. He said he is avoiding the crowds and saving some money by traveling on Tuesday.
"Today is really great. (The ticket) was the cheapest one I could find. So far it's been pretty nice," Dave said. "I'm (also) leaving on Saturday to avoid a big rush on Sunday and to save cost."
Another traveler, Chris Parker, a student at Valley Forge Christian College, is heading home to family in Virginia. He said his $80 ticket Tuesday would cost around $180 on Wednesday.
As for the roads, AAA says this is the first significant rise in holiday travel this entire year, compared to the Fourth of July or Memorial Day, due to the drop in gas prices.
A forecast for this year's Thanksgiving holiday period by AAA predicts about 23 million vacationers will take to the skies between Friday, Nov. 18, and Tuesday, Nov. 29.
For more information, download the PHL Holiday Travel Tips PDF CLICK HERE.
Reported by Jim Melwert, KYW Newsradio 1060
