Busy Labor Day holiday travel period kicks off at Atlanta airport

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – Just in time for the busy Labor Day holiday travel weekend, flights are back on track after Idalia tore through the Southeast on Wednesday.

All of the cancellations due to the closed airports in Florida and South Georgia on Wednesday would’ve definitely put a bump in people’s holiday plans.

Atlanta News First spoke with the spokesperson of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport who says the hurricane coming earlier in the week was serendipitous because 1.7 million people are expected to pass through Atlanta’s airport this weekend.

The Federal Aviation Administration expects to have at least 52,000 flights in the air on Thursday, which they say will kick off the third busiest travel weekend of the year.

So far this summer, the Transportation Security Administration says it has screened about 228 million passengers and counting.

Between Friday, Sept. 1, and Wednesday, Sept. 6, TSA expects 14 million people will travel by plane, which they say would be an 11-percent hike from the Labor Day holiday last year.

If you are skipping the airport and driving to your Labor Day destination, AAA says the busiest times to be on the roads will be Thursday, Aug. 31 between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m., and next Friday, Sept. 8 from 11 a.m. until 9 p.m.

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