RENSSELAER, N.Y. (NEWS10) - The number of seasonal travelers this year is at a record high, according to AAA. The days from Christmas until New Year's Day are the busiest holiday travel days of record for road and air travel.
AAA notes that nearly 119 million people will be traveling on Saturday through New Year's Day 50 miles or more. Some airlines have added hundreds of flights per day to their schedules in order to accommodate the millions of passengers.
The Transportation Security Administration is expected to screen about 40 million travelers from the holiday period of Dec. 19 until Jan. 2, which is up 6.2% from last year. According to AAA, 90% of people will be traveling by car. At the Rensselaer Rail Station, Olivia Levins from South Carolina said she booked her ticket out months in advance.
"We planned a trip a long time ago," Levins said. "So, I don’t think that we had any trouble, but hopefully we’re here early enough to get a good seat and everything, though.”
However, Ariel Jensen-Vargas, who is traveling to New York City, said the heavy traffic and icy road conditions caused her to miss the train.
“I was peeling out of the driveway, knowing that I was going to barely miss my train, and I pulled out in front of someone who was kind of oncoming," Jensen-Vargas said. "I knew I had time. So he decided to go right in front of me and then super slow down. So I can say that it was his fault that I was late for my train by three minutes, but it was also my fault that I should've left three minutes earlier, but anyway they changed my ticket, so I'm going to be here for a couple hours."
It is recommended that travelers arrive at the airport at least 2 hours before their flight to minimize long lines and wait times.
