Long Island Holiday Travel 2018: Best, Worst Times To Drive

Traffic during the holiday season is expected to take up to four times longer than an already traffic-filled Long Island trip, according to AAA.

More than one-third of Americans will be traveling by plane, train or automobile this holiday season, which is a record-breaking 112.5 million travelers and a 4.4 percent increase over the last year, says AAA forecasters.

Of those travelers, more than 102 million will be getting to their destinations by car, which is the highest number of drivers since AAA started tracking holiday travel in 2001.

“’Tis the season for holiday travel, and more Americans than ever will journey to spend time with friends and family or choose to take a vacation,” Bryan Shilling, managing director of AAA Travel products and services, said in a press release. “With a record-breaking one-third of the country choosing to travel this holiday, roadways and airports are sure to be busy.”

Traffic is expected to start getting congested by Wednesday, Dec. 19, says INRIX, a global mobility analytics company. The worst day to travel will be Thursday, Dec. 20. Drivers could see travel increases up to 3.75 times more than a normal trip, especially from 9:30 to 10:30 p.m., INRIX says.

“Our advice is to avoid traveling during peak commuting hours," says Trevor Reed, transportation analyst at INRIX. "If schedules allow, leave bright and early, or after the morning commute.”

AAA says New York City is the only cold-weather destination to make their list of top 10 year-end travel destinations, so a number of tourists will also be clogging up the roads, trains and planes.

Holiday Flights

Most individuals traveling by plane for the holidays depart two or three days before Christmas and return the day after the holiday, AAA says.

Flights on Dec. 22, 23 and 26 are expected to be heavily crowded. Airport travel on Christmas Eve and Christmas is expected to be light in comparison, AAA says.

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