ANOTHER EXTREMELY BUSY EVENING FOR LAX ON THE FINAL DAY OF THANKSGIVING PEAK TRAVEL
For Immediate Release
Dec. 2, 2019
Contact:
LAX Public Relations
(424) 646-5260
Travelers are Advised to Plan for Extra Time at the Airport
(Los Angeles, CA) The Thanksgiving travel season for Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA), which ends on Tuesday, is officially one of the busiest on record. LAWA officials continue to urge travelers to plan for extra time at the airport today given the high volume of travelers. Today’s passenger volume is expected to be on par with yesterday’s, with nearly 250,000 travelers forecasted. Peak travel times today will also rival those of yesterday, when more than 90,000 people, the capacity of the Rose Bowl, came through LAX in just a five-hour period. Today’s “super peak” is expected between 5-9 p.m.
In the months and weeks leading up to the Thanksgiving travel season, LAWA officials invested significant time and resources in preparing to ensure the guest experience was as smooth as possible. Officials are pleased that guests accessed the enhanced mass transit options provided throughout the holiday, including the new LAX Holiday Shuttle, free Metro Rail and public bus passes, as well as the increased FlyAway service. As high travel volumes on Sunday continued well into the late evening and early morning, given flight delays resulting from bad weather in the Midwest and on the East Coast, these additional services were a welcome alternative for travelers.
So far, over the course of the Thanksgiving holiday, LAX has seen increased ridership across the public transportation options. For instance, yesterday, Sunday, Dec. 1, saw 2,010 passengers on the Union Station FlyAway, 3,242 on the Van Nuys FlyAway, 418 on the Hollywood FlyAway and 152 on the Long Beach FlyAway. This is an increase of 12%, 7%, 18% and 25%, respectively, compared to the previous week. To date, the LAX Holiday Shuttle has served 265 total passengers, 112 to and from the Century City location and 153 to and from the Santa Monica location. Metro Green Line and municipal bus service are also seeing increased ridership. Yesterday, LAX’s supplemental holiday LAX Green Line bus and LAX City Bus Center shuttles transported 1,205 passengers, on top of the shuttles that are typically on that route.
The new LAX-it lot, where travelers connect with ride app or taxi drivers, also worked smoothly but was consistently busy. For most of the day Sunday, wait times for all modes of transit at LAX-it were 20 minutes or less. During peak travel hours, when wait times exceeded 20 minutes, officials worked swiftly to resolve traffic congestion and get guests on their way.
However, today will be another extremely busy day at LAX with more potential impacts due to weather throughout the country in addition to normal traffic in the Los Angeles Area. Travelers are reminded to:
- Arrive Early: Departing guests are advised to allow additional time to reach the airport, clear security and reach their gates. Typically, LAX officials encourage guests to arrive in the terminal at least two hours before the boarding time for domestic flights and three hours before the boarding time for international flights. Today, guests are encouraged to add at least one hour to that time to account for traffic and lines at the airport.
- Skip the Drive: Guests are encouraged to consider alternate means of traveling to and from LAX, including FlyAway bus and public transportation. Learn more at www.FlyLAX.com/HolidayTransit. The LAX Holiday Shuttle and free rides on multiple municipal buses and the Metro Green Line continue through the end of the day today.
- Be Informed in Real Time: The @FlyLAXStats Twitter account provides regular updates on traffic conditions and parking availability at terminal parking structures and Economy Lot E. This real-time data can also be found at www.FlyLAX.com, which also has predictions for traffic congestion throughout the day in addition to the real-time information.
LAWA remains the No. 1 origin and destination airport in the world, and is committed to transformation and modernization so that Los Angeles has the world-class airport it deserves. Learn more about our modernization program at www.flylax.com/connectingLAX.
LAX, the sixth-busiest airport in the world serving nearly 66 million guests in 2022, is owned and operated by Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA), a proprietary, revenue-generating department of the City of Los Angeles that also governs Van Nuys Airport (VNY). As the international gateway to the Southern California region, LAX and its partners are dedicated to meeting global airport standards for customer satisfaction, safety, regional economic leadership, organizational performance and sustainability.
To better serve the millions of domestic and international guests that travel through LAX each year, the airport is undergoing a multi-billion-dollar capital improvement program to modernize its entire campus. Initiatives underway include an Automated People Mover, a Consolidated Rental Car Facility and two projects that will each add over one million square feet to the airport's existing property: Terminal 9 and Concourse 0. For more information about LAX, its transformation and its environmental, social and local workforce commitments, please visit flylax.com. Follow LAX on X (formally Twitter), Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook and YouTube.
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