Floridians break Memorial Day travel records

Travelers geared up for heavy traffic and air travel delays heading into Memorial Day weekend.

“Well I’m from Sunrise Florida and I’m headed to the keys,” said driver Frankely Camacho. “Traffic is crazy.”

“What I do to prepare for it is, I dress comfortably because I know it’s going to be a long wait,” said airline passenger Blake Daberer.

According to AAA, a record 2.5 million Floridians are expected to travel this weekend alone. Over two hundred thousand of them will travel by air.

“We’re coming down to go to my mom’s condo,” said airline passenger Ross Mckee who flew in from Atlanta. “This is going out a little bit on the edge, we usually don’t go this far, but this year we’re going to do that.”

At Palm Beach International Airport, Friday was projected to be the busiest travel day of the weekend. TSA anticipates over 44,600 people total this weekend, including an estimated 17,000 who flew out today.

“Most people probably have already gone through but tomorrow will be a little busy so […] people should plan to arrive two hours in advance so they can get parking and then get through the TSA checkpoint,” said Nicole Hughes, director of marketing and communications at PBIA.

Hughes added that this weekend marks the start of what they expect to be a very busy summer, so travelers should pack their patience.

She said, “We have seen an uptick in passengers this entire year, so I’m assuming it will be a bit more than last year.”

While airports will be busy, roads will be even busier this weekend. AAA says 2.3 million Floridians will be traveling by car.

“Things are really expensive you know and nowadays jobs are not paying good and so we have to stay within the state,” said Camacho.

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