The Fourth of July travel period is expected to set records for passengers, and crowds have already been packing into the world’s busiest airport this summer.
Roads around the airport and security lines are likely to be busy Thursday. The busiest day of the Independence Day holiday travel period at Hartsfield-Jackson International is expected to be Friday, when more than 367,000 passengers are expected to pass through the airport.
But Sunday, July 7, and Monday, July 8, will also be busy, with more than 364,000 passengers expected at the airport on each of those days.
Travelers should be prepared for the possibility of long lines to check bags and get through screening.
Airport officials recommend travelers get to the airport at least 2 to 2.5 hours before domestic flights, and 3 hours before international flights.
Officials have been working to address long wait times at security checkpoints with the Transportation Security Administration adding staff.
Peak wait times for security screening can reach 40 minutes or more during busy periods at the Atlanta airport.
And there are other potential hiccups that can delay travelers, including traffic backups on roads approaching the domestic and international terminals, airport parking lots reaching capacity and turning away cars, and long lines to check bags.
If you’re preparing to take a trip and plan to navigate the crowds at the airport, here are some other things you should know:
Prepare for traffic
If you’re driving, congestion on highways, around the terminal curbside and parking decks could delay your trip.
If you’re heading to pick up visitors, instead of driving in loops around the airport, you can wait for your friends or family at the airport’s cellphone lot at 1920 Autoport Drive in College Park.
To get there, pay close attention to signs on the airport roads, which direct those coming from I-85 South to drive past the terminal, following signs to the ATL West Parking/Rental Car Center while staying in the right lane to drive around a loop to the cellphone lot.
Parking? Have a plan
During busy periods, airport and off-airport parking decks and lots tend to fill up, turning away motorists who are then forced to circle around the airport searching for alternatives while rushing to catch a flight.
Some people have missed their trips entirely because they couldn’t find parking.
The problem worsened after Hartsfield-Jackson last October closed the popular South economy lot to make way for a yearslong construction project to build a new parking deck.
It’s a good idea to be aware of options for parking in advance — and to make a reservation.
At Hartsfield-Jackson, the airport offers parking reservations for the airport-run ATL West deck and international terminal parking decks.
Many off-airport lots take parking reservations, including The Parking Spot, WallyPark, and PreFlight off Camp Creek Parkway, as well as Peachy Airport Parking north of the airport and FastPark & Relax near the international terminal.
Take MARTA into the domestic terminal
MARTA can be a convenient way to get to the airport by skipping highway traffic and parking hassles.
There’s long-term parking at some MARTA stations for a daily fee of $5 or $8 a day, including the College Park, Doraville, Lindbergh Center, Dunwoody, Sandy Springs and North Springs stations, according to MARTA’s website.
Shuttle buses are used to ferry MARTA passengers between the domestic and international terminals.
Know the options for TSA screening
There often isn’t a way to avoid lines at the security checkpoints, but there are multiple screening options that can reduce some of the stress.
The airport currently has four screening checkpoints for passengers at the domestic terminal.
They are:
- Main checkpoint for standard screening
- North checkpoint for standard screening
- Lower North checkpoint, for standard screening and Clear members with standard screening
- South checkpoint, for PreCheck members, Clear members with PreCheck member screening. Also available: Delta Digital ID and United PreCheck Touchless ID.
The airport sometimes shifts traffic between checkpoints, and during certain periods opens a line for PreCheck on the right side of the Main checkpoint.
A PreCheck membership costs about $78 or $85 for five years, depending on where you sign up. It allows you to get into a PreCheck line, which may be shorter than the line for standard screening and offers the chance to avoid the hassles of taking off your shoes and removing your laptop from your bag.
A Clear membership is much costlier, with a standard price of $189 for one year to skip the regular line and get into a Clear line. It can be used with PreCheck or on its own.
Clear is now enrolling travelers at Hartsfield-Jackson into the TSA PreCheck program for expedited screening, in addition to enrolling people into Clear’s own trusted traveler program.
Clear in late June began offering TSA PreCheck enrollment from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily at the domestic Terminal North departures level, near the North security checkpoint entrance. Those applying must bring documents such as a passport.
PreCheck applicants can pre-enroll or walk up to a PreCheck enrollment location without an appointment. After enrolling, there is a wait for approval, with notification typically in 3-5 days — though it sometimes takes up to 60 days, according to Clear. After approval, travelers can use PreCheck by adding their Known Traveler Number to airline reservations.
Delta Digital ID is an expedited security line for Delta customers who qualify and opt in, to be processed at the entrance to the screening area using facial recognition instead of a driver’s license or ID check.
Delta Digital ID is now available at the domestic and international terminals at Hartsfield-Jackson, as is PreCheck — though both have limited hours.
United Airlines on May 15 launched its own PreCheck Touchless ID option at Hartsfield-Jackson at the South checkpoint. It allows those who opt in through the United app to also be processed through facial scanning.
An easier path to baggage claim
After more than two years of construction, new elevators for arriving passengers who take the Plane Train to baggage claim are now operational at Hartsfield-Jackson.
The elevators at baggage claim started operations in May. That means passengers who need an elevator no longer need to get off at Concourse T and then make the trek to baggage claim from there.
The elevator bank sits in front of the escalators that take passengers up from the Plane Train tunnel.
Because the elevators block the view of people waiting for their friends or family to arrive, Hartsfield-Jackson in mid-April installed a huge video screen that shows passengers on the screen as they come up the escalators.
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