Severe winter weather conditions are impacting travel across the United States as holiday plans are disrupted by snow, rain, and freezing temperatures. As of Sunday morning, forecasts indicated that various regions, including the Northeast and Northwest, would experience ongoing inclement weather, affecting major interstate highways such as I-95, I-90, I-84, I-80, and I-5.
In the Northeast, lingering wintry conditions caused significant delays, while the West braced for more rainfall in lower elevations and mountain snow. One of the more serious disruptions occurred Sunday morning when downed power lines led to service suspensions on Amtrak and New Jersey Transit railroad routes. Both companies halted train service between Philadelphia, New Jersey, and parts of New York, with Amtrak reporting that overhead power lines blocked tracks between Philadelphia and New York. The service was expected to resume by noon ET.
As travel delays continue, the weather is also causing significant disruptions in air travel. By late Sunday morning, there were 1,683 delayed flights and 55 cancellations, according to FlightAware. Chicago O’Hare, New York’s JFK, and Boston Logan airports were among the hardest hit, with dozens of delays at each location.
This year is expected to be the busiest holiday travel season on record, with more than 119 million Americans expected to travel at least 50 miles from home between Saturday and New Year’s Day, surpassing the 2019 record. The heaviest congestion is expected over the weekends before and after Christmas, as well as on key travel days such as Dec. 20, Dec. 27, and Dec. 30.
To manage the anticipated surge in travelers, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is preparing to screen nearly 40 million people between Dec. 19 and Jan. 2, marking a 6.2% increase over last year. The TSA’s busiest days are expected to be Dec. 20, Dec. 27, and Dec. 30, although Dec. 26 and Dec. 29 will also see high volumes. Airlines for America, the trade group representing U.S. airlines, predicts 54 million air travelers during the holiday period, a 6% rise compared to last year.
As travelers head into the holidays, they should be prepared for potential delays and cancellations due to ongoing weather disruptions.
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