Stormy Weather Could Impact Your Holiday Travel Plans. Plus, The Best And Worst Times To Hit The Road

Although forecast details are still in flux, wintry weather could cause some travel troubles for the millions of Americans traveling for the Thanksgiving holiday. According to AccuWeather, a pre-holiday storm will spread rain, snow, wind and some ice just ahead of the peak travel days for the holiday weekend.

AccuWeather meteorologists said they believe that the biggest negative travel impacts connected with the storm will be from Monday to Tuesday in the Midwest and from Tuesday to Tuesday night in the Northeast. Some weather-related travel issues may linger into Wednesday.

Thanksgiving forecast for Rochester NY

Other than widespread rain predicted to fall on Tuesday in Rochester, the weather forecast this week in the Rochester region is expected to be "pretty uneventful" with no travel impacts expected, said Tony Ansuini, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Buffalo. Along with rain, several inches of snow are expected in northeastern New York and into New England on Tuesday, he said.

Last week, some lake effect snowstorms were predicted ahead of the holiday — in the Buffalo and Watertown areas — but forecasters on Monday said that's no longer in the forecast.

"A lot of people are thankful for that," Ansuini said.

Tuesday's rain may continue into Wednesday, but should clear by mid-morning, according to the Weather Service. Thursday — Thanksgiving Day — is expected to by partly sunny.

According to the Weather Service, Thanksgiving Day is currently expected to be among the warmer days in Rochester this week, with a predicted high in the upper 40s. The predicted high on Tuesday and Wednesday is in the mid 40s. The temperature is expected to drop slightly by the weekend, with a predicted high of 40 on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

The normal high in Rochester for Thanksgiving week is 48, according to the Weather Service.

What to expect when traveling for Thanksgiving

AAA of Central and Western New York predicts Thanksgiving travel will be among the busiest in the last two decades, with 55.4 million people expected to travel 50 miles or more from home for the holiday.

The prediction is the third-highest forecast since the agency started tracking holiday travel in 2000. The top two years were 2005 and 2019, respectively.

The Transportation Security Administration said it expects to screen an estimated 30 million people, around 2 million per day, at U.S. airports over the 10-day Thanksgiving travel period that began Friday and ends the Sunday after Thanksgiving.

"For many Americans, Thanksgiving and travel go hand in hand, and this holiday, we expect more people on the roads, skies, and seas compared to 2022,” said Paula Twidale, senior vice president of AAA Travel. “Travel demand has been strong all year, and AAA’s Thanksgiving forecast reflects that continued desire to get away and spend time with loved ones."

Most Thanksgiving travelers will drive to their destinations, according to the agency. A November AAA report predicts automobile travel volumes will rise 1.7% over last year, with 49.1 million people traveling by car for Thanksgiving.

Traveling for Thanksgiving? The best times to hit the road this year

There are ways to beat holiday road congestion. Morning departures tend to be ideal - with the trip completed before 11 a.m. - as fewer vehicles are on the road then.

Transportation analytics company INRIX found that the best time to travel is after 6 p.m. on Wednesday, before 10 a.m. on Thursday, before 11 a.m. on Friday and before noon on Saturday and Sunday.

Wednesday is expected to be the busiest day to travel for Thanksgiving, with average travel times as high as 80% over normal in some metro areas.

What are the busiest travel times during Thanksgiving holiday?

The busiest — and worst — times to hit the roads are between 2 and 6 p.m. on Wednesday, between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Thursday, between noon and 4 p.m. on Friday and after 3 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, according to AAA.

Here are the worst times to hit the road during Thanksgiving holiday

Not all traffic is created equal.

Here are some of the worst congestion times within U.S. traffic corridors on Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving.

► Los Angeles: Interstate 5 north to Bakersfield is expected to be 88% above normal, with peak traffic around 4:30 p.m.

► Washington D.C.: The Baltimore/Washington Parkway north is expected to be 71% above normal, with peak congestion around 2 p.m.

► Seattle: Interstate 5 north to Bellingham is expected to be 71% above normal with peak congestion around 3:30 p.m.

► Chicago: Interstate 94, from Chicago to Milwaukee, is expected to be 18% above normal with peak traffic around 4 p.m.

► Detroit: Interstate 96 West from Detroit to Grand Rapids is expected to be 35% above normal with peak traffic around 2:15 p.m.

What to expect at the airport this Thanksgiving

Air travelers should arrive at the airport early, to allow for plenty of time to move through TSA checkpoints, as 4.7 million people are expected to travel for the holiday this week, according to AAA. That's an increase of 6.6% compared to last year, and the highest number of Thanksgiving air travelers since 2005.

Tuesday and Wednesday before Thanksgiving are the busiest air travel days ahead of the holiday and the most expensive.

The Transportation Security Administration expects the busiest travel day of the weekend at airports to be Sunday, when 2.9 million passengers are expected to fly.

"It's going to be busy with approximately 30,000 passengers departing Rochester over the seven-day period," said Andy Moore, director of the Frederick Douglass Greater Rochester International Airport. "It's a bit of an uptick from 2022 and certainly back to travel levels pre-pandemic."

Locally, the week of Thanksgiving is the airport's busiest travel week of the year, Moore said.

The busiest days of the week, he said, will be the Tuesday before the holiday and the Sunday at the end of the holiday weekend. On Tuesday, Wednesday and Sunday, 48 flights are scheduled to take off daily from the Rochester airport. Fewer flights are scheduled for Thursday, Friday and Saturday this week.

And the airport is prepared for the rush.

Be patient, Moore advised. Arrive at least 90 minutes before your scheduled flight and use mobile ticketing through the airlines in order to avoid lines, he said. Also, monitor the weather in the 24 hours before your scheduled flight in case of inclement weather in Rochester as well as elsewhere.

"We could be having great weather in Rochester but if a hub area is impacted by a storm, it could also impact your flight," he said.

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Rochester NY Weather: Thanksgiving forecast, best and worst travel times

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