Travel picks up at MSP Airport ahead of Thanksgiving

Travel will be picking up at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport ahead of Thanksgiving.

Wednesday is expected to be one of the busiest travel days at the airport, with Tuesday set to be the second-busiest day for departures.

MSP Airport officials say they have additional staff on hand to help direct passengers.

Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officials also say they are ready with extra staff to help.

The American Automobile Association (AAA) projects this year will be the third-busiest for Thanksgiving travel since the agency started tracking travel patterns in 2000.

Nearly 90% of Thanksgiving travelers will be driving to their destinations, according to AAA.

Meanwhile, travel experts say the pandemic and the ability of many people to work remotely has blurred the lines between business and leisure trips. They think many people will start holiday trips early or return home later than normal because they will spend a few days working remotely — or at least tell the boss they’re working remotely.

RELATED: Thanksgiving might bring changes in holiday-travel habits

It looks like the rush started early this year, as the TSA screened nearly 2.33 million travelers on Sunday. It’s the first year that the number of people catching planes surpassed the 2.32 million screened the Sunday before Thanksgiving in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic began.

“People are traveling on different days. Not everyone is traveling on that Wednesday night,” Sharon Pinkerton, senior vice president at the trade group Airlines for America, told the Associated Press. “People are spreading their travel out throughout the week, which I also think will help ensure smoother operations.”

Tuesday, the TSA is expected to provide tips on safe and efficient holiday air travel at MSP Airport. KSTP.com will stream that news conference at 2 p.m.

Stay with 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS and KSTP.com for updates.