CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — If you were headed out of town Wednesday, you were in good company. The Chicago Department of Aviation said it expected Dec. 20 to be the busiest travel day of the holiday season at O'Hare Airport.
Through Jan. 2, 2024, airlines anticipated bringing 2.78 million passengers through O'Hare.
Midway's busiest day, meanwhile, isn't far away. Experts believe it will be the day after Christmas, and over the two-week rush the Southwest Side airport should see 632,000 passengers.
Aviation Department Spokeswoman Georgiaree Godfrey said O'Hare's numbers are a 4.6% increase compared to 2022, while things at Midway are in line with last year and above pre-pandemic levels.
One of those travelers was Betsey, from Anchorage, AK, who said the most challenging part of her trip was getting out while it was snowing. She told WBBM, while waiting for a rideshare. that Chicago's weather felt like a heatwave.
This holiday season, a Deloitte study found that nearly half of Americans planned to travel between Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve.
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