With clear skies over most of the nation and airlines prepared for an onslaught of travelers, Chicago’s two major airports survived one of the heaviest travel days of the year relatively unscathed.
If the weather holds through Sunday–predicted to be the busiest travel day in history–America’s delay-weary travelers might survive this holiday weekend with relatively little to grouse about.
For many air, rail and roadway passengers, Wednesday’s movements from here to there, which legions of people admitted they had been dreading after a summer filled with late and canceled flights, could have been a lot worse.
“I was expecting it to be a total nightmare, but so far, so good,” said Lynn Greene of Ft. Wayne, Ind., who was bound Wednesday afternoon for Boston, where she will share Thanksgiving dinner with her 21-year-old son. Greene experienced a 30-minute delay on her connecting flight at O’Hare International Airport, a holdup she considered reasonable in this age of travel woes.
Despite the ongoing labor dispute with its mechanics, United Airlines said nearly 80 percent of its flights systemwide arrived on time Wednesday. Clear skies across most of the nation surely helped.
Midway Airport experienced the busiest travel day in its 53-year history, Chicago aviation officials said. An estimated 63,000 people used the Southwest Side airport, a 30 percent increase over Thanksgiving Eve last year.
Many Midway fliers said they were trying to avoid the delays associated with O’Hare, as well as find a cheaper ticket.
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“I’ve heard all about O’Hare, and we tried to stay away from there,” said Roberta Ujda of La Crosse, Wis., during a layover on her day’s journey to New Jersey, where she will gather with her mother and relatives for the holiday. “It’s important that I get there–there will be 32 of us, plus the animals–and I didn’t want to take any chances.”
United’s labor problems may have discouraged some travelers but seemed unlikely to cause much trouble this weekend.
On Wednesday, a U.S. District Court judge in Chicago saw no reason to act on the airline’s request to fine the union representing mechanics for allegedly failing to cooperate with a back-to-work order issued last week.
The judge delayed the case until at least Monday.
Operations at Midway have soared in the past year as discount airlines such as Dallas-based Southwest and Indianapolis-based American Trans Air (ATA) have increased service to the airport. Passengers like Ujda have sought refuge from the labor problems being experienced by United, which operates out of O’Hare, and the high ticket prices being charged by the nation’s biggest airlines.
Since the beginning of the year, major airlines such as United and American have raised fares a total of 20 percent. The latest increase, $100 for a one-way ticket, was imposed Monday by United and quickly matched by its major competitors.
Mark Costa, station manager for ATA, said the airline had nearly 200 arrivals and departures Wednesday, compared with 140 a year ago. And almost all of his airline’s departures were sold out. Planes were departing with 96 percent of the seats filled.
In addition, flights were departing on time, compared to a summer schedule that was frequently filled with storm delays.
Southwest Airlines also reported a surge in passengers. The airline, which operates 130-seat Boeing 737 aircraft, said seats on its 242 arrivals and departures were packed. Last year, the airline flew 230 planes on the day before Thanksgiving.
Nationally, the Air Transport Association is predicting record numbers of air travelers throughout the Thanksgiving weekend. The busiest travel day is expected to be Sunday, with a predicted 2.2 million passengers.
“In all likelihood that day will set the single-day record in commercial aviation history,” said Michael Wascom, a spokesman for the association.
From Friday through Monday, the association expects more than 20 million passengers. The lightest travel days are Thursday and Friday, when only about half of air carriers’ seats will be filled, Wascom said.
Heavy travel is expected despite a 6.5 percent increase in airfares since October 1999, he said. “We still have a strong economy even though our sector has been hit with these big energy costs. People are still flying,” Wascom said.
O’Hare’s business, however, remains fairly flat compared with a year ago, with about 262,000 passengers expected to pass through its terminals Sunday.
American Airlines expects the long weekend to be a busy one, with 80 percent of its seats predicted to be filled Sunday, but no records are expected to be broken, said Mary Frances Fagan, Chicago spokeswoman for the airlines.
“This week, except for a couple of days, we’re not seeing the volume of traffic break our [all-time] top 20 days,” she said. Labor negotiations with American’s flight attendants have been put on hold for the holiday weekend, she said.
On the roads, the AAA Chicago Motor Club is predicting a 5 percent increase in auto travel this week, despite a 25-cents-a-gallon–or 13 percent–increase in gasoline prices since November 1999.
“The difference in cost of gas will probably not be more than $10, and people won’t let that stop them from going on a holiday trip and spending time with their family,” said Norma Cooper, a spokeswoman for the organization.
About 6.4 million motorists are expected to hit the roads in the Great Lakes region over the holiday, Cooper said.
In the Chicago area, motorists won’t have to contend with construction delays. As of noon Wednesday, the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority halted what little construction is under way. The Illinois Department of Transportation said that despite construction, all lanes will be open on the Eisenhower, Stevenson, Ryan, Bishop Ford, Kennedy, Edens and Kingery Expressways.
Motorists can expect constricted routes on Roosevelt Road between Interstate Highway 294 and Mannheim Road, Harlem Avenue over the Kennedy Expressway, and Illinois Highway 7/Larkin Avenue over Interstate Highway 80 in Will County. All will have one lane open in each direction.
Despite the rosy news, Wednesday was not without some travel problems.
Cash machines at Midway ran out of money for a couple of hours in the morning. Anticipating flight delays, many passengers arrived at airports two to four hours ahead of their departures, only to move through ticket lines smoothly and sit around the airport, playing cards or reading books.
“Can you believe it? It’s right on time,” said Ron Muck of Park Ridge as he boarded a 4:45 p.m. flight at O’Hare headed for Atlanta. “We’ve been here for two hours. We should have allowed ourselves only an hour.”
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