Thanksgiving brought huge traffic to DFW Airport. What will Christmas be like?
The day before Thanksgiving is always a busy travel day at DFW Airport, but that was only part of the reason why there was bottleneck, bumper-to-bumper traffic at the airport Nov. 26, forcing some customers to miss their flights.
A spokesperson for DFW Airport told the Star-Telegram that due to the expected crowds, they tried to minimize the impacts of their $12 billion construction projects as much as they could, but the lane closures near the northern toll booth still caused quite a delay.
“From the north tollgate to Terminal C, it took me an hour,” DFW Airport store owner Steve Cosgrove said. “It usually takes me five minutes.”
The airport experienced large volumes of tollway traffic before Thanksgiving on Nov. 16, which the airport again credited to a “historic magnitude of construction.”
Chris McLaughlin, DFW’s new CEO, told the Star-Telegram the airport construction is to refresh the airport’s infrastructure. There are large projects currently taking place on Terminals A and C as well as the development of Terminal F, which will be built to better handle the flow of travelers through security and customs.
With Christmas and New Year’s ahead of travelers, those flying should heavily consider taking the train directly into DFW Airport terminals.
But to get an idea of what customers may experience if they do travel through DFW for the holidays, we spoke to locals who were impacted by Thanksgiving travel delays. Here’s what we heard.
What travelers experienced at North Texas airports during Thanksgiving
Cosgrove said that in the 14 years he’s had a store in Terminal C of DFW, this is the most traffic he’s ever seen on Thanksgiving.
The traffic that began at the North Tollway gate was backed up to the exits for highways 121 and 114.
“What was surprising was once you got through the terminal, it was fairly empty,” he said. “Most of the traffic was just to pick people up.”
Cosgrove highly suggests future travelers take the train in or out of the airport during Christmas and New Years.
Denise Ragen was flying from Miami on Nov. 25 when she got stuck at DFW for more than 12 hours during an overnight layover. She posted about her traveling experience on Facebook and also talked to the Star-Telegram.
“We were told onsite from employees it was weather, maintenance issues and also crew timing out,” Ragen told the Star-Telegram. “The online complaint department then stated it was an air traffic controller issue.”
DFW was one of the 40 airports forced to cut down on flights during the recent government shutdown.
What North Texas airports anticipate for Christmas travel
DFW Airport had a record number of 4.7 million travelers between Dec. 20 and Jan. 7 in 2024. Their busiest travel days were the weekends before and after the Christmas holiday. And their busiest traffic times were in the evenings, between 3 and 6 p.m., while Dallas Love Field’s busiest days last year were on Dec. 20, 21, 24 and 27th.
“While efforts are in place to minimize impacts during peak travel times, construction zones in key areas such as International Parkway and Terminal C may also contribute to temporary bottlenecks,” according to a statement on the DFW Airport website. “Travelers should allow extra time to navigate these areas.”
A spokesperson for Dallas Love Field told the Star-Telegram that Christmas is usually less busy than Thanksgiving. “Unless there is an irregular surge, we expect that to be the case again this year.”
Those flying out of Dallas will have to deal with construction projects, too. There’s currently a road construction project on Mockingbird Lane near the airport entrance.
“Pack some patience too as you pack your bags,” the Love Field spokesperson said.