Plan ahead, arrive early if you’re traveling this week

CEDAR RAPIDS - Whether it's by plane or automobile, those traveling during the holiday weekend will want to allow for extra time during a peak traffic week.

That extra travel time should ensure a smoother and safer journey, officials say.

'It is certainly one of the heaviest travel days of the year. It starts on Wednesday and runs through the weekend,” said Pat Hoye, chief of the Governor's Traffic Safety Bureau. 'Unfortunately, whenever you have very heavy traffic, crashes go up.”

Iowa saw five fatalities each in 2016 and 2015 during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, which includes Thursday through Sunday, according to Iowa Department of Transportation data.

'That's certainly a concern for us,” Hoye said.

Hoye noted that one of the worst days for unsafe travels is actually the day before Thanksgiving, dubbed Blackout Wednesday. With a lot of people home and celebrating the holiday, intoxicated driving incidents often spike, he said.

To help keep roads safe, the Governor's Traffic Safety Bureau again this year is funding overtime hours for more than 170 law enforcement agencies statewide, Hoye said. The bureau provides overtime funding to offices on multiple busy holidays.

While last year's 402 highway fatalities represented a spike in roadway deaths, years before - and so far this year - had been trending much lower, Hoye said.

'We believe that high visibility enforcement during these peak travel times do serve their purpose and help reduce crashes,” he said. 'With the exception of 2016, the last five-year trend we have been going the right way.”

Hoye said one of the simplest recommendations to motorists is planning ahead to avoid rushing to their destination.

Time to fly

Allowing additional time for travel also is encouraged for those flying out of Eastern Iowa Airport in Cedar Rapids to help cut down on lines.

Airport director Marty Lenss said he recommends arriving about 90 minutes before flight departures to allow plenty of time for parking, screening and boarding.

'This week of Thanksgiving and then spring break are traditionally our two busiest times of the year for air travel,” Lenss said. 'Everybody is reminded to take a little more time.”

Upgauging, or the increasing size and capacity of planes at the airport, over the years has increased the number of seats available. That, in turn, brings more people to the airport, Lenss added.

'Overall seat inventories for the year, we're pacing a 13 to 14 percent growth in airline seats. That adds obviously more volume and passengers,” he said. 'We'll likely have more passengers this weekend than we did last year, largely because we have the increase in aircraft size.”

Lenss added that the airport's freight activity is up about 4 percent over last year.

TSA Pre Check

For frequent flyers, the airport's new TSA Pre Check program - which allows enrolled travelers the ability to board their flight without having to take off their shoes, outerwear or belt and keep their laptop and compliant gels and liquids in their carry-on bag - should help shorten some lines.

However, those who don't fly as frequently might want to refresh themselves on items the TSA prohibits as carry-on luggage at tsa.gov.

Lenss said one tip for holiday travelers is to wrap gifts after arriving at their destination. If deemed necessary, TSA officers may unwrap gifts to verify their contents.

In addition to TSA Pre Check, the airport this season is offering a new valet parking option. People can sign up for the full-service valet offering at flycid.com/valet.

l Comments: (319) 339-3175; mitchell.schmidt@thegazette.com

Travel Stats

Here is a look at the number of November passengers at The Eastern Iowa Airport in Cedar Rapids over the past four years:

- 2016 - 94,846

- 2015 - 86,868

- 2014 - 89,610

- 2013 - 83,576

Source: The Eastern Iowa Airport

Here is a look at the number of Thanksgiving weekend highway traffic fatalities for the past five years:

- 2016 - 5

- 2015 - 5

- 2014 - 3

- 2013 - 2

- 2012 - 9

Source: Iowa Department of Transportation