Will you be one of the nearly 47 million Americans expected to hit the roads this Thanksgiving?
If so, know that you will have a very narrow window of time in which traffic won't be a total nightmare. Based on insights from the crowdsourcing traffic app Waze, these are the best and worst times to drive during the week of Thanksgiving. Plan you travels accordingly.
Best times to drive this Thanksgiving
• Thursday, Nov. 26 (Thanksgiving Day): Traffic patterns will mimic those of a typical weekend day. Accordingly, traffic will be lightest in the morning and evening. Congestion will peak between noon and 4 p.m.
• Friday, Nov. 27: Traffic patterns will mimic a typical weekend.
Worst times to drive this Thanksgiving
• Tuesday, Nov. 24: Traffic will significantly increase by 1 p.m., with the worst setting in between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.
• Wednesday, Nov. 25: Congestion will begin as early as 11 a.m., and will last for the remainder of the day.
• Sunday, Nov. 29: Folks will begin heading home around 10 a.m., and gridlock will take shape between 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. However, according to data from Google (Waze's owner), Saturday, Nov. 28, has the potential to be "up to 40% worse" than on Sunday.
And if last year is any indication, these will be the worst cities for Thanksgiving travel, according to Google.
1. Los Angeles
2. Washington, D.C.
3. San Francisco
4. Philadelphia
5. Dallas
6. New York City
7. Chicago
8. Houston
9. Austin
10. Miami
11. Tampa
12. Denver
13. Portland, Ore.
14. Charlotte, N.C.
15. Seattle
16. Detroit
17. Boston
18. Pittsburgh
19. St. Louis
20. Honolulu
21. Providence, R.I.
This story has been updated.
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