Take the road for the holidays? Expect significant traffic on Tuesday afternoon.

SEATTLE – With millions of people planning to drive for the holiday weekend, INRIX predicts that travel time could be up to twice as long in the Seattle area for Thanksgiving.

INRIX, based in Kirkland, is a world leader in the study of traffic data. It indicates that the worst time to hit the road in the Seattle area is Tuesday between 4am and 6am.

Tuesday's holiday traffic should be felt along the I-5 corridor.

On I-5 South, between exits 178 and 149, drivers may experience delays of up to twice the normal commute time.

Traffic on Wednesday morning will likely cause headaches for drivers.

The best days to travel will be Thanksgiving day, Friday or Saturday. Motorists should also expect heavy traffic on Sunday as most travelers will return home after a long weekend.

INRIX also indicates that motorists can expect to pay the highest Thanksgiving gasoline prices in four years, with a national average of $ 2.79 on November 1, 31 cents higher than a year ago. year.

INRIX and AAA have partnered to help travelers prepare for the Thanksgiving holiday travel forecasts for 2018:

• 48.5 million Americans are expected to hit the road this week, an increase of 5% over last year.
• INRIX believes that travel times will begin to increase as of Monday 19 November.
• If you are taking the plane, avoid driving on the I-5 South from Seattle to the Sea-Tac Airport on Wednesday night. You could face more than 40 minutes of extra driving.

If you are taking the plane from the Sea-Tac Airport for the holidays, you will be one of about 1,000 people doing it. Sea-Tac Airport recommends that you arrive at the airport at least two hours before your flight and do it three hours in the case of an international flight.

We also encourage you to use public transportation or to travel by public transport to the airport if you want to avoid traffic jams at the terminal.