TSA expects record-breaking week for travel for 4th of July holiday weekend
NEWARK, New Jersey (WABC) -- The Fourth of July travel rush is underway as records are expected to be broken over the holiday weekend.
The TSA says they are prepared to screen more than 32 million people through the 8th, which would be a 5.4% increase around this time last year.
The TSA at Newark Airport set a record last Thursday for the most screenings in one day at TSA checkpoints at the airport. Officials say 83,687 people were screened and it was the busiest day ever at a New Jersey airport.
Last Friday was the fourth busiest day for TSA, screening 2.93 million people at airports nationwide.
While Newark International Airport has already seen its busiest day, it comes on the heels of an air traffic controller shortage causing significant backups and an FAA ground stop at Newark Airport earlier this week.
It was due to a meltdown at the Tracon Facility in Westbury, Long Island that manages airspace throughout the region.
The FAA wants to relocate the controllers there who handle New Jersey airspace to a similar facility in Philadelphia, but controllers don't want to move.
The facility handles flights for the three major airports in the region, so the disruption led to two-hour delays.
The TSA is looking to break the three million mark at the end of the long holiday weekend.
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