By Michael Hill
Correspondent
Where were the chaos, the crowds and the commotion to, outside and at Newark Liberty International Airport this morning?
“Today was easy. No traffic. No lines. It’s like empty,” said Matt Powell.
How does Mimi Powell explain that?
“Two days before Christmas. I think everybody has fled the city. So, it was like a ghost town,” she said.
The newlywed Powells are among the estimated 1.7 million travelers who will go through Newark Liberty this holiday period. They heeded advice to get here early.
“We expected it to be way worse. We’re here way earlier than we would have been otherwise,” Matt said.
The pair was at the airport almost two hours early.
“Well, you never know with Christmas travel,” Mimi said.
“My preference is to be here two minutes early. So this is way too early for me,” Matt said.
At Newark Penn Station, a family waiting for an Amtrak train to D.C. shared a similar story.
“We were expecting it to be a lot more crowded but it’s not as crowded so we got some hot chocolate. We’re just waiting,” said Leslie Besner.
AAA estimates a record number of travelers this holiday season — 103 million nationwide traveling 50 miles or more from home, 2.5 million in New Jersey. That’s up by 1.5 percent from last year — 2.2 million by road; 166,000 by air; and 80,000 by rail, bus or boat.
“I think that we have seen over the past couple of years the economy really recovering. People believe that they’re going to have more money in their pockets. Gas prices have been relatively low for the last year and that has all helped to get people to travel a bit more,” said Cathleen Lewis, director of government and public affairs for AAA Northeast.
AAA also credits lower gasoline prices compared to a few years ago. New Jersey’s average per gallon is $2.35.
“Still 10 cents cheaper than Pennsylvania and New York, so it’s still a bargain when you look at our neighbors. I think that we saw prices that went really, really high in the last five years so this still feels like they’re really low,” Lewis said.
Lewis advises folks who still plan to drive to check their car’s fluids and pay attention to the road, echoing State Police who say they’re looking out for aggressive driving, handheld device distracted driving and driving under the influence.
State Police say they’ve added 80 extra troopers to patrol New Jersey’s highways this holiday period and of course troopers will be using their discretion to write warnings and citations.
“We just want to let people know that a ticket, a motor vehicle summons is pretty much one of the good things that could happen in that situation. You look at the worst thing that can happen in that situation, you’re looking at a motor vehicle accident, you’re looking at yourself being injured, you’re looking at another member of the motor vehicle and public possibly being injured because of that. It’s really a selfish act,” said Sgt. Brian Police.
While the train station and airport seemed less chaotic than anticipated, AAA warns prepare for a different greeting on Christmas Eve.