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Regional highway travel during the extended holiday week is expected to see an uptick of about 2% compared to the same time the previous year, while air travel should see a slightly higher gain.
The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission is preparing for the increase in holiday travel on the state toll road from Friday through New Year’s Day. About 5.2 million vehicles are expected on the turnpike across those 11 days, with Friday and Dec. 29 accounting for the largest numbers — 610,000 and 600,000, respectively.
To accommodate the anticipated traffic, all construction work will be suspended on the turnpike beginning Friday and extra safety and police personnel will be on hand to assist motorists.
Meanwhile, AAA is predicting 11.7 million drivers will take to the roads of the Mid-Atlantic states of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York during the 10 days of Saturday through Jan. 1 — similarly an increase of about 2% from the prior year.
In the same region, according to AAA, about 901,000 people are expected to board flights for holiday travel (up 3.5% from last year), while 396,000 will be using an alternate mode of transportation, such as a bus or train (up by 16.2%).
Nationwide, AAA expects nearly 104 million people will drive to their holiday destinations this year. That’s the second-highest number behind the pre-pandemic peak of 108 million drivers, in 2019.
About 7.5 million passengers are expected to head to the nation’s airports, surpassing the 2019 record of 7.3 million.
AAA projects that more than 4 million Americans will travel by alternate means, including cruises — up from 3.89 million in 2019. It notes the post-pandemic rush to return to cruises should continue to bolster bookings in the new year.
“This year’s holiday forecast is a perfect example of the strong travel trends we’ve been seeing all year,” said Bevi Powell, AAA East Central senior vice president.
Winter driving tips offered
The turnpike commission offers the following tips to prepare for winter travel behind the wheel:
• Test your vehicle’s heater and defroster to ensure they’re operating properly.
• Consider installing winter wiper blades.
• Check all lights to make sure they’re working.
• Check tire pressure for proper inflation.
Motorists who run into any issues while traveling on the turnpike can call *11 from a cellphone to reach an operator.
Travelers can visit 511PA.com to check on Pennsylvania road conditions.
Jeff Himler is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Jeff by email at jhimler@triblive.com or via Twitter .
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