Officials warn of ‘extremely heavy’ Thanksgiving traffic
This Thanksgiving, prepandemic traffic is fully back, Massachusetts transportation officials detailed Wednesday afternoon, explaining the best routes and safety precautions to take.
“We are expecting a much heavier travel volume this year, especially in comparison to the last few years,” said Jonathan Gulliver, State Highway Administrator, at a press event Wednesday. “There’ll be a lot of people on the roadway, and we want to ensure that everybody gets to the destination safely so they enjoy the holiday.”
Travel pains are expected to kick off this
Thursday and Friday and ramp up to “meet or exceed” pre-pandemic levels Thanksgiving week.
Though travelers look to be spreading out their travel more than in past years, officials said, Tuesday and Wednesday are likely to be the worst outbound travel days. Thanksgiving day looks to be the lightest.
“So if you’re doing a day trip, just going there in the morning and coming back the afternoon, you’re going to be OK,” said Gulliver.
Coming back, Sunday afternoon, travelers can expect the heaviest traffic — “by far,” he added.
Massport Director of Aviation Ed Freni said Logan Airport will see 1.2 million travelers between
Thursday, Nov. 17, and Monday, Nov. 28.
Passengers should plan for extra time to get through the airport for this period, Freni said. The director also recommended passengers use the FlyLogan app for flight status and concessions, take public transportation and check TSA requirements in advance.
The Highway Department, MBTA and Massport will be combatting the travel chaos with extra staff and expanded services, officials said.
Construction on major roadways will be paused around the holiday, including keeping the Sumner tunnel open over the weekend. The MBTA will be running additional trips on routes to the airport, said MBTA Deputy General Manager Jeff Gonneville.
Further changes to MBTA service, including the ferries and commuter rail, are detailed on holiday schedule on the website.