
AAA is projecting that 50.9 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more for the Thanksgiving holiday, marking the highest level in a dozen years.
AAA is projecting that 50.9 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more for the Thanksgiving holiday, marking the highest level in a dozen years.

Happy Holidays! Photo: U.S. DOT

AAA is projecting that 50.9 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more for the Thanksgiving holiday, marking the highest level in a dozen years.
That would be a 3% increase over last year and the highest travel volume since 2005, with 1.6 million more people taking to the roads, air, rails, and waterways compared with last year. AAA and Inrix, a global transportation analytics company, predict travel times in the most congested cities in the U.S. during the holiday week could be as much as three times longer than the optimal trip.
Air travel is projected to grow the most this year, by 5%, with as many as 3.95 million travelers taking a plane to their destination. This has been boosted by some of the cheapest prices for airfare since 2013, according to AAA. Gas prices have also gone up this year, with travelers paying some of the highest gas prices since 2014.
Despite the increase in gas prices, the vast majority of holiday travelers will use the highway, and automobile travel is expected to grow by 3.2% this year.
With 45.5 million Americans hitting the roads, delays of up to two and three times the normal commute are likely in large cities. Of the ten most congested cities, Chicago is projected to see the most severe slowdown with a delay of three times the normal amount, followed closely by San Francisco and Los Angeles at 2.5 times the normal commute.
If sitting in traffic for hours wasn't bad enough, AAA says that hundreds of thousands of drivers will likely have an even worse day. AAA expects more than 330,000 motorists to be stranded by lockouts, flat tires, and battery-related issues over the Thanksgiving break.
With so many people traveling for Thanksgiving, just where are they headed? For warmer weather and theme parks, apparently. Anaheim, Calif. and Orlando, Fla. are the top two destinations over Thanksgiving – maybe not coincidentally the locations of Disney Land and Disney World, respectively. New York City, Honolulu, Cancun, and Las Vegas were also in the top 10 destinations.

Speaking at the TMC Annual Meeting in Nashville, ATA President Chris Spear said trucking faces mounting pressure from rising fuel prices, geopolitical instability, and uncertainty around trade policy.
Read More →
More than 100,000 new trucking companies enter the industry each year, but regulators manage to audit only a fraction of them. That churn creates opportunities for inexperienced startups — and for “chameleon carriers” that shut down after safety violations and reappear under new identities. Read more from Deborah Lockridge in this commentary.
Read More →
HDTX is an intimate event that connects heavy-duty trucking fleet managers with industry suppliers through small-group discussions, educational sessions, and structured one-on-one meetings.
Read More →
New DAT One feature shows top-paying loads directly on an iPhone’s home screen, helping carriers react faster to spot-market opportunities.
Read More →
Optimal Dynamics says its new Scale platform uses AI agents and optimization to help carriers find and secure freight that improves network balance and profitability.
Read More →
DAT Freight & Analytics data shows tightening flatbed capacity, easing produce markets, and softening van and reefer rates.
Read More →
NACFE's Run on Less - Messy Middle project demonstrates the power of data in helping to guide the future of alternative fuels and powertrains for heavy-duty trucks.
Read More →
A federal court ruling allows New York City’s congestion pricing program to continue, leaving truck tolls in place for fleets delivering into Manhattan.
Read More →
Fontaine Modification has introduced a new customer portal designed to give fleets real-time visibility into the truck modification process, addressing one of the most common questions fleet managers face: “Where’s my truck?”
Read More →
Strong freight rates, rising volumes and tighter capacity push trucking conditions higher, though diesel prices could temper gains in the near term, FTR cautions.
Read More →