One In Three Expected To Travel, Breaking Holiday Records

SAN JOSE, CA -- With record-breaking touring expected on runways, rails and roads in the next few weeks, "over the hills and through the woods" may be a little more complicated, travel experts contend.

A 9 percent increase in passenger activity over last year is anticipated at the Mineta San Jose International Airport, continuing with a surge in holiday travel on the heels of a record-breaking Thanksgiving this year.

The report also coincides with the Silicon Valley airport commemorating this week its own new passenger annual record of 14.3 million passengers, exceeding the 14.2 million set in 2001. The accomplishment ranks San Jose as the San Francisco Bay Area’s No. 2 airport in terms of customers served.

The peak travel period is marked as Dec. 19 through Jan. 6, where packing one's patience when negotiating space with people on planes, trains and automobiles will be the mantra.

"During the 19-day travel timeframe, we will serve more than 800,000 departing and arriving passengers, which is more than 70,000 travelers compared to the same days last year," airport spokeswoman Rosemary Barnes said.

Airlines for America announced last week projections of 45.7 million passengers to travel on U.S. airlines over the winter holiday travel period. The industry trade organization for the leading airlines in the nation indicated a 5.2 percent increase over the estimated 43.4 million passengers who flew during the comparable time frame last year. The increase amounts to 126,000 travelers per day over a year ago.

In order to accommodate the expected average of 2.54 million passengers per day, U.S. airlines will offer an additional 143,000 seats daily across their global networks.

“With airfares at historic lows, travelers are choosing to fly on U.S. airlines in record numbers, especially during the busy holiday season,” A4A Vice President and Chief Economist John Heimlich said. “Increased consumer choices and fares that match nearly every budget have enabled a record number of people take to the skies to visit loved ones, conduct business or enjoy a holiday getaway.”

Daily passenger volumes are projected to range from 2.1 to 2.9 million. The busiest expected travel days ranked in order are as follows: Dec. 21, 20 and 26. The lightest travel days are expected to be Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, followed by Jan. 5.

Is traveling more pleasant?

Airlines have made a dramatic drive in substantially reducing the number of passengers bumped because of overbooking, a controversial practice that resulted in a horrifying incident in which a passenger was beaten up when he was forcibly removed from a United flight.

A recent report released by the U.S. Department of Transportation indicates that some airlines have cut out the practice almost entirely. United has reduced the number of passengers who were involuntarily denied boarding by nearly 97 percent in the past year. Many airlines have beefed up the travel compensation to passengers who get bumped.

Some hard on-the-ground predictions

AAA forecasts that more than one-third of Americans will travel this holiday season. The record-breaking 112.5 million travelers on planes, trains and automobiles for the year-end holidays represents a 4.4 percent increase over last year.

The surge is the most since AAA has been tracking holiday travel.

For the more than 102 million people who will pack up their cars for a holiday road trip, INRIX, a global mobility analytics company, predicts travel times in the most congested cities in the United States could take up to four times longer than a normal.

“Tis the season for holiday travel. And more Americans than ever will journey to spend time with friends and family or choose to take a vacation,” said Bryan Shilling, managing director, AAA Travel products and services. “Strong economic growth fueled by robust consumer spending continues to drive strong demand for seasonal travel."

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