Best Times To Beat Thanksgiving Traffic In Maryland

PRINCE FREDERICK, Md. — Thanksgiving is widely considered the busiest holiday for travel in the United States. Why is that, and is there anything you can do about it?

Since the holiday falls on a Thursday, it creates a short travel window in which everyone is trying to get from one place to another. Plus, unlike winter holidays, many people don’t have extended time off for Thanksgiving and are instead fitting the holiday into a long weekend. For those working in retail or service jobs, the holiday is squeezed into a single afternoon. And whether you’re heading somewhere for a long weekend or rushing back for your early Friday shift, the facts are, you’re traveling — and likely battling unfavorable traffic conditions to get to where you’re going.

Now, with that information up front, there are some options for mitigating some of the Thanksgiving travel issues you may run into when you hit the road.

Travel On Thanksgiving

Traffic is actually most manageable on Thanksgiving Day itself. Travelers will have the best outcomes if they leave early in the morning on Thanksgiving Day, between 9 a.m. and noon. Local traffic peaks between noon and 3 p.m. when people head to nearby destinations for Thanksgiving dinners.

Leaving Wednesday? Try The Morning

Wednesday after work is one of the busiest Thanksgiving travel times. If you’re planning to leave on this day, try to schedule your departure for the morning, before noon. Tons of people leave right after work, or leave work between 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. and get on the road. This Wednesday afternoon and evening travel turns into a supersized rush hour nightmare for many.

Avoid Afternoon Travel On The Weekends

Post-holiday return travel is also best done on weekend mornings. Most people set out in the afternoon between noon and 3 p.m., because who wants to wake up early and rush home on the weekend? But even if it’s not your ideal way to travel, you might thank yourself later for making this choice. Leaving early means you could have a smoother ride home and more time to recover before heading into a new workweek and getting into the full swing of the holiday season.

A Few Other Tips

You can also ease your travel by utilizing live GPS apps, packing and gassing up your car the night before, making your coffee at home to avoid extra stops and considering alternate routes. A scenic route may take the same amount of time, but you’ll save yourself the stress of sitting in traffic. That way, you can show up to Thanksgiving dinner in a good mood.

What are your Thanksgiving travel tips? Let us know!

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