Thanksgiving travelers in and out of New York City will not be riding the gravy train this year — with forecasters predicting that storms could wreak havoc on flights Wednesday.
Light rain was expected to start in the five boroughs around 4 p.m. and gradually ramp up, accompanied by wind gusts of up to 35 mph Tuesday night, according to Fox Weather meteorologist Seth Darling.
The overnight hours could see the “heaviest rainfall,” of up to 2 inches or more, with the morning commute being especially impacted, he said.
“Any of the flights on Wednesday morning could have some potential delays. Anyone trying to leave the tri-state area through any of the interstate options that we have will definitely encounter some slowdowns, and lower visibility,” Darling warned.
The worst of the storm system would affect areas to the south — Atlantic City, Delaware, Baltimore and Washington, DC — bad news for anyone traveling to that region, the forecaster said.
Light rain was expected to start in the five boroughs around 4 p.m. and gradually ramp up, accompanied by wind gusts of up to 35 mph Tuesday night. Getty Images
Those who are traveling north could run into snow, with winter weather warnings in place in areas like New York’s Adirondack Mountains, most of Vermont, northern New Hampshire and western Maine, according to Darling.
“It looks like most of the ice potential is for the highest elevations, and that will be short-lived,” he said.
The good news is that conditions will clear up by Thanksgiving in the boroughs and tri-state area, with a high of 50 and winds expected to be less than 20 mph, gentle enough to avoid any balloon disasters at the annual Macy’s parade.
“We were in the mid-40s and now we are expecting a high of up to 50 degrees, so it’s actually turning out a little bit nicer,” Darling said.
The worst of the storm system would affect areas to the south — Atlantic City, Delaware, Baltimore and Washington, DC — bad news for anyone traveling to that region. Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
Encouraged by cheaper gas and airfares than a year ago, more than 55 million Americans plan to travel more than 50 miles to eat their turkey this year, according to AAA.
Tuesday, Wednesday and Sunday are expected to be the busiest travel days, with a total of 8.5 million domestic air travelers, the Transportation Security Administration said.
Tuesday morning was business as usual at Newark Liberty, Kennedy and LaGuardia airports, with only a smattering of delays reported and no cancellations.
More air traffic controllers were on duty this holiday season and new air routes along the East Coast had been opened up, US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said Monday.
Still, he urged travelers to keep an eye on conditions and schedules before leaving home.
“Mother Nature, of course, is the X factor in all of this,” Buttigieg said.
With Post wires
Rain and wind still expected to disrupt holiday travel around NYC
