NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — Americans are crowding airports and hitting the roads as the Thanksgiving holiday rush begins.
The TSA set a new record for the year on Friday when agents screened more than 2 million passengers, CBS2’s Christina Fan reported Sunday.
Families that missed getting together for the holidays in 2020 are making up for lost time.
“We’re all vaccinated. We have our cards,” one traveler said.
Like millions of other Americans hitting the skies and roads, the Kaplan family is excited to travel again.
On Friday, the TSA screened more than 2.2 million people at airport security checkpoints, the highest volume since the coronavirus pandemic started.
The looming deadline of a federal vaccine mandate is adding to this year’s holiday travel crunch. Federal employees, including TSA agents, must have at least one COVID shot by Monday or risk being fired.
There are concerns it could impact staffing during the busy week, but the head of the TSA said he doesn’t anticipate problems.
“I don’t think they should expect chaos. We work very closely with the airlines, with the airports. We have travel projections for the coming week and we’re very confident this is going to be a very smooth operation over the next several days,” said TSA Administrator David Pekoske.
Health experts continue to worry that gathering in enclosed spaces could add fuel to already rising COVID rates in many parts of the country. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said more than 110,000 new cases were reported Thursday, as the 7-day average surpassed 94,000.
On Friday, the CDC director endorsed an advisory panel’s booster shot recommendation, saying anyone 18 or older can get a Pfizer or Moderna booster shot six months after their second dose.
Experts said air travel for the holidays is expected to be 80% higher this year than last – close to pre-pandemic levels.
from CBS New York https://newyork.cbslocal.com/2021/11/21/thanksgiving-holiday-travel-airport-security-tsa-covid/
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