Thanksgiving travel numbers highest in nearly a decade

Nearly 50 million people are expected to travel this holiday, making it the busiest Thanksgiving since 2007.

Airports geared up for the rush Wednesday.

“The Redmond Airport has seen record numbers every month this year, so we’re expecting that to continue through the holiday time with lots of people coming and going,” said Nicole Jurgensen, airport security coordinator, said Wednesday.

She said this October was 20 percent busier for the airport than the last, so this holiday season is expected to continue that trend.

Despite the crowds, passengers were in good spirits.

“We had a great flight experience. We love flying out of this airport, just kind of that cozy town feeling, so we’re really excited to be here,” said one passenger.

The airports are busy, but the roads are seeing even more traffic. According to a recent survey by TripAdvisor, 33 percent of people traveling Wednesday were taking to the sky, while nearly double that, 62 percent, will drive to their destination. Some surveys suggest lower gas prices could be a motive.

People are also going farther this year. Over half, 51 percent, are traveling more than 200 miles.

Still, as holiday transportation trends change, Thanksgiving traditions tend to stay the same.

“We all get together, we play games every night, we get mad at each other and then we all have a great time,” said another passenger.