Airport officials prepare for possible record-breaking holiday travel at RDU
RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- The end of the week is expected to be the busiest time to fly as millions of Americans travel for the Christmas and New Year's holidays.
With Christmas falling on a Monday this year, officials at RDU expect Thursday through the weekend to be the busiest days as people catch their flights, maybe even breaking the record.
Airport leaders are urging passengers to get to the airport at least 2 hours early.
RDU expects 54,000 people to pass through their terminals on Christmas Eve.
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Another big issue could be the parking.
You can get a parking reservation 24 hours in advance.
If you're getting dropped off make sure you leave early enough and brace for the long lines.
"2019 was our high-water mark, we might exceed that by 2% this year, that would also be 22% above last year. So, it will be extremely busy here at RDU. We expect about 806,000 people to pass through the airport over a 19-day period, December 15 to January 2," said Stephanie Hawco with RDU.
TSA is expecting to screen about 2.5 million passengers overall between now and Christmas.
