INDIANAPOLIS – Thanksgiving Day is almost here and Wednesday is predicted to be the busiest day for travel out on Central Indiana’s roadways.
“I have never driven on a day like this, so I just said a prayer that we are safe and everyone is safe and we don’t hit a bunch of traffic hopefully,” said Megan S.. who was traveling to Georgia.
“We left a little earlier than we usually do,” said Luke Pretzie, traveling to Chicago. “We took the day off of work to do that, so hoping its not so bad when we leave at this time.”
The Wednesday before Thanksgiving is always known to be a busy travel day but according to AAA, this will likely be the busiest travel day for the entire year, even breaking records.
“This is the busiest travel time of the entire year,” said Christina Griffiths with AAA Hoosier Motor Club, “Typically the Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving, is going to be the busiest travel day of the entire year that we are going to see.”
At least 30,000 more Hoosiers are expected to drive this Thanksgiving holiday, just on Indiana’s roads. That’s a 2% increase from last year.
“There are just a lot more options that people have to be able to make that travel happen, so it’s not surprising that we are seeing such an increase this year,” Griffiths said.
Some people even left a day earlier to avoid the worst of it.
“When I was coming home on Tuesday morning, it was not bad,” said Tyler Lyons, who was traveling from northern Indiana. “It was a simple drive for me. Nothing too crazy”
For those out driving later in the day on Wednesday and into Thursday, local drivers have a few quick reminders before hitting the roads.
“Take deep breaths, count to 10, and try not to get upset by the way other people are driving around you,” Pretzie said. “It’s worked for me so far!”
“Stay calm and do not text and drive,” Lyons said. “I saw so many people texting and driving. It’s kinda scary. Just stay off your phone and drive safe.”
“Just be aware of your surroundings and pay attention to what’s going on around you and try to make sure we all get to where we want to be safely,” Megan S. said.
One way to avoid the Thanksgiving travel rush is to drive on Thanksgiving Day. The roads are expected to be much quieter.
