AAA estimates that at least 71.7 million people will travel by car over Thanksgiving – that’s an additional 1.3 million travelers on the road compared to last year. Barrett Wilson is a public information officer with the Mississippi Department of Transportation. She says the department’s biggest priority is the safety of motorists.
“Our biggest messaging is to wear your seatbelt,” she said. “It is easy. It's free. It's already in your car. But it is the most effective way to prevent major injuries in the event of a crash.”
Wilson says motorists should pay attention to their speed as they’re driving.
“We want people to follow the speed limit,” she said. “If you plan ahead of time, knowing that there are going to be more cars on the road, you should probably add an extra 10- 15 minutes to what you think [it will be].”
Motorists should avoid distractions such as eating or texting while driving.
A record number of passengers will be traveling this year by air. AAA expects 5.84 million people to fly over Thanksgiving week. L. Sherie Dean is the director of communications at the Jackson Medgar Wiley-Evers International Airport. She says there have been 2,100 to 2,200 daily passengers flying in and out of the airport this week.
“The weekend has been pretty thick with passengers flying in and folks flying out for the Thanksgiving week,” she said. “Now that we've reached the week, we have a lot more folks that we anticipate coming into the airport Tuesday and Wednesday.”
Dean says passengers should arrive at the airport no less than two hours before their flight. Most importantly, she says passengers should avoid packing or carrying any restricted items.
“Weapons or like ice picks,” she said. “I've seen folks come through with a fishing pole before with the hooks hanging. It's probably not a good idea. Just off the top of my head…dumbbells. Just different things that you could possibly use for a weapon. And keep in mind, it's all for safety.”
Dean says officials from the airport authority, alongside other airport employees, will be providing an extended customer service experience Tuesday and Wednesday Thanksgiving week.
“Our leadership team, JMAA employees, we will be out here just providing a little bit more of that extra customer experience,” she said. “Making sure that our passengers are moving through lines quickly and getting to where they need to go so we can get them home for the holidays.”
