COLORADO SPRINGS — More people are traveling this Labor Day weekend.
According to AAA, Labor Day weekend travel is up over last year by about 4% nationwide. More people are traveling through the Colorado Springs airport.
Travelers came in waves through the Colorado Springs Airport on Friday. The TSA security line was normal most of Friday. The Security line did stretch out into the lobby on Friday afternoon for around thirty minutes but then returned to normal.
Dana Schield is the Senior Public Communications Specialist at Colorado Springs Airport. Schield said they expect Friday and Sunday to be the busiest days.
“It's going to be a busy travel weekend,” Schield said.
TSA is expecting more than 14 million passengers to travel by air over the weekend.
“We see more folks in the airport, more folks in line, more people in the terminal, and waiting for concessions, all of that,” Schield said.
The Colorado Springs Airport is expecting to see 28,000 travelers go through the terminal from Friday to Monday.
“In comparison to Labor Day in 2022, we are 13% higher with our traffic so it is almost four thousand more folks traveling through the airport this year in comparison to last year's labor day, so quit the increase in travel” Schield said.
One of those travelers is Celina Gonzalez.
“I am here probably once every other month,” Gonzalez said.
Gonzalez has some special plans this week so she is hoping for smooth travel.
“This Labor Day weekend is my first wedding anniversary. My husband and I are both military, in the army so I'm stationed at Fort Carson and he is at Fort Knox. We kind of alternate every other month, I go there and he comes here. So this weekend is my turn. We're gonna go celebrate our anniversary in Louisville actually at the Notre Dame game in Indiana," Gonzalez said.
Gonzalez was a frequent flier out of the Colorado Springs Airport.
“I have tried to fly out of Denver but it's just so packed all the time and parking is horrible and it's expensive so I pay a little bit more just to travel a little left and fly out of Colorado Springs because it's super easy to get in and out,” Gonzalez said.
Gonzalez gets nervous flying on a holiday weekend so she arrives just a little bit earlier.
“I always get insurance on my flights and I know if something happens on the flight, they will just put me on the next one. I try to build, that's not my plan,” Gonzalez said.
Wanda Jackson is also flying out of COS on Friday. Jackson was in Colorado Springs for the first time. She said she is definitely coming back and travel so far has been easy.
“It's been great because I am early so I am missing the crowd I am able to get through,” Jackson said.
Jackson says flying on a busy weekend can have complications, but she does not let it stress her out.
“Don’t take it personally, it is nothing personal to you, take a deep breath. Me getting frustrated is not going to get me to my destination any quicker, so grab a Pepsi and have a seat,” Jackson said.
Schield encourages people to get to the airport early so they have plenty of time to park, check-in and get through security.
Schield said the airport is prepared for more travelers on Labor Day weekend because they have had a very busy summer. COS had a record number of passengers in June.
She said travel tends to slow down after Labor Day weekend.
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