Nov 18, 2008 5:54 pm US/Eastern
Bush Offering Plan To Ease Holiday Travel Crunch
WASHINGTON (WJZ/AP) ―
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If you're bracing yourself for holiday travel, you can loosen up a bit.
AP
If you're bracing yourself for holiday travel, you can loosen up a bit.
Weijia Jiang reports the president announced that military airspace will be used to ease congestion in the skies with hopes to ease anxiety at the airport.
It's that time of year--the time when people start dreading their travel plans.
"Sometimes flights are canceled or delayed, so it's hectic," said Phil Shields.
But AAA predicts air travel is expected to drop by 7.2% and auto travel is down by 1.2%.
"In a tug of war between pursestrings and heartstrings, heartstrings win out. Thanksgiving is an important family event. Americans will cut back on other expenses or find cheaper alternatives to their holiday plans," said Robert Darbelnet, AAA president.
And for those who still plan to fly, the military is opening much of its other airspace for commercial flights.
"Allow more flights to take off and land and have less congestion in the skies," said Mary Ellen Miller, BWI passenger.
The president announced this holiday season, even more airspace will be available. Military lanes will be opened up in the Midwest, Southwest and all the way up the West Coast.
"We innovated last year to ease air travel. It worked, so we're expanding that innovation for this year," President Bush said.
"It depends on if the airlines can coordinate the airspace in order to get planes up and back on time. That's the big thing. Will they be on time?" said Mike Cannaliato.
The president dubbed them "Thanksgiving expressways." The Federal Aviation Administration will also provide more staff members to help with checking in and scheduling. The president is also calling for more consumer protection.
"Greater compensation for lost bags as well as tougher penalties when airlines fail to notify travelers of hidden fees," he said.
Even more good news for travelers: the FAA is auctioning off landing slots from New York City airports. The president says that increased competition will mean lower fares.
The new regulations for airlines go into effect in December.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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