Hitting the road this Thanksgiving? Here’s everything you need to know

More than 54 million Americans are expected to travel this Thanksgiving holiday, according to the American Automobile Association, the most since 2005.

Compared to last year, 2.5 million more people will be hitting the roads, skies, rails and waterways during the Thanksgiving holiday period, Wednesday through Sunday.

“Thanksgiving is one of the busiest holidays for road trips, and this year will be no different,” Trevor Reed, transportation analyst at global mobility analytics company INRIX, said in the AAA announcement. “Knowing when and where congestion will build can help drivers avoid the stress of sitting in traffic. Our advice to drivers is to avoid commuting times in major cities altogether or plan alternative routes.”

With help from INRIX and Google analysts, we’ve compiled the best and worst times to hit the road in Atlanta.

Best departure time: Thanksgiving Day at 6 a.m., according to Google.

Best return time: Leaving around 6 a.m. Sunday should help you avoid the worst of Atlanta’s traffic, but there are, of course, no guarantees.

Worst departure time: Google analysts recommend avoiding the roads around 3 p.m. Wednesday.

But according to INRIX, the wo r st day to travel is today between 5 and 7 p.m. You can expect to spend almost three times longer than you’d typically spend around this congested time, the company noted in the AAA announcement.

INRIX also highlighted the worst hot spot in Atlanta: between exits 216 (McDonough) and 227 (I-675) on I-75.

Avoid trave ling Sunday: To avoid increased congestion after the holiday, consider leaving before or after Sunday. Google research shows 4 p.m. on the Sunday after Thanksgiving is particularly troublesome for Atlanta traffic.