By Julia Kelly SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC NEWS) AAA reports that a record-breaking 54 million people are traveling this Thanksgiving. It is the highest volume of travelers since 2005.
Jason Abrams, a spokesperson for Amtrak, said the company planned for the holiday traffic. They add more trains into the schedule and extra cars to the trains themselves.
“People want to be back home with their family and friends,” said Abrams.
Steven Koegel, the vice president of communications at Centro in Syracuse, said local transportation is also necessary during the holiday season.
Koegel said there is a substantial increase in travel between the Syracuse University and SUNY Oswego campuses and the Regional Transportation Center.
Koegel said Centro has extra busses at the ready if there is any overcrowding.
“We’re able to act quickly when we can … SUNY Oswego students tend to crush our busses,” said Koegel.
Koegel said Centro takes three trips from Oswego to Syracuse on the weekends to make sure students can get home.
Both Amtrak and Centro planned ahead to handle weather warnings of snow storms.
Amtrak works with a forecasting service to track the weather. They keep their riders up to date on delays with their Twitter: @AmtrakAlerts.
Abrams said they receive real-time updates from their staff about what the rails look like. They make the information as accessible to travelers as possible.
“We also have our employees onboard who have the information and the Sheraton,” said Abrams. “We accommodate as best as we can.”
Koegel said Centro reminds their drivers to take their time in winter weather.
“Our drivers travel and drive in the Syracuse snowy winters their entire lives,” said Koegel.
Centro created different routes for extremely snowy weather. Riders cansign up for SMS messaging or download the Centro app to check if their pick-up spot has been adjusted.
