Traveling for Labor Day? Watch for lines, packed parking lots, delays at CLT airport
Arrive at least two hours early if you’re headed to Charlotte Douglas International Airport this weekend , as some parking lots are full or closed and big crowds showed up for a second straight day amid the busy Labor Day weekend travel rush on Friday, airport officials urged.
About 315,000 passengers are expected to fly “to, through and from” the world’s fifth busiest airport through Monday, airport officials said on Twitter Thursday.
That compares to the estimated 330,000 passengers at the airport on the pre-COVID 2019 Labor Day weekend, officials said
The airport saw its largest crowds Thursday and Friday — about 80,000 passengers each day — and officials urged patience.
And summer-long flight delays persist.
On Thursday, CLT experienced at least 160 delays and nine cancellations by 11 p.m., according to FlightAware.com, which tracks flights at the nation’s airports. Delays included 94 departures, or 12%. At least two-thirds of the delays occurred in the afternoon and evening, the FlightAware site showed..
Some weekend days this summer have seen many more delays at CLT, 500 to 600, The Charlotte Observer previously reported. Bad weather compounded staffing issues on days experiencing the worst delays.
At 9:15 p.m. Friday, at least 172 CLT flights were reported delayed — including 99 departures, or 13% — and six canceled.
American Airlines is the dominant carrier at Charlotte’s airport.
Asked by the Observer on Thursday if the airline expected Labor Day weekend delays and cancellations due to ongoing staffing issues, spokesman Andrew Trull didn’t say either way. In an email, he instead referred to CEO Robert Isom’s recent comments from American’s second quarter earnings call:
“Looking forward, we will limit capacity to the resources we have and the conditions we face,” Isom said. “Our operational performance from the quarter and the results we have delivered in the first few weeks of July give us confidence moving forward. But we still aren’t where we need to be.”
The airline was investing in its operation “to ensure we meet our reliability goals and deliver for our customers,” he said. “We’re taking proactive steps to build additional buffer into our schedule for the rest of the year.”
Here’s more of what you need to know about Labor Day weekend in Charlotte:
At the airport
Parking: Daily North, Daily Deck East and Overflow Lots 1, 2 and 3 were full or closed on Friday, according to the airport’s real-time parking map.
Spaces were available in Long Term 1, Express Deck, Daily Deck West and the Hourly Parking Deck.
Check the map or call 704-359-5555 for the latest parking conditions.
“We strongly encourage travelers to book parking online when purchasing their airline tickets by visiting parkCLT.com,” airport officials said.
Consider being dropped off and picked up by someone, use rideshare companies, taxis or the CATS bus, officials urged.
Terminal expansion: If you haven’t flown to or from the airport this summer, note that about 90,000 square feet of the terminal lobby expansion’s west side opened in July.
Door 2 on the arrivals/baggage claim level and Doors 1 and 2 on the departures/ticketing level are open.
As you enter the terminal’s upper and lower levels on the west side, you won’t immediately see ticket counters, security checkpoints and luggage carousels. Signs point you in the right direction.
New Concession CommonSpace opened in August on the D/E Connector, across from The Plaza.
The eatery offers craft cocktails, locally roasted Counter Culture Coffee, locally baked pastries, scones and croissants and handmade sandwiches.
Rain in Labor Day forecast
Showers and a thunderstorm are “likely” in Charlotte between 2 and 3 p.m. Monday, with just a chance of the wet stuff earlier and later in the day, the NWS Charlotte forecast at 3 p.m. Friday showed.
Monday should be mostly cloudy, with a high near 84 and a 60% chance of precipitation, according to the forecast.
Friday was sunny with a high near 91 while Saturday has a slight chance of showers. Saturday should be mostly sunny, with a high near 90, according to the forecast.
NWS forecasters predict Sunday also will be partly sunny, with a 40% chance of rain and a high near 85.
Gasoline prices tick lower
AAA doesn’t forecast the number of drivers traveling on Labor Day weekend, as it does for some other holidays, Tiffany Wright, AAA Carolinas director public affairs told the Observer on Thursday.
But falling gas prices could lead to more cars on the road, national analysts say.
The average price of a gallon of gasoline in Charlotte was $3.528 on Friday, according to AAA.
That’s down considerably from $3.949 a month ago but still way higher than the $2.906 average a year ago, AAA reports.
A wreck involving a car and an 18-wheeler closed three of the four I-85 southbound lanes for several hours on Friday morning, emergency officials said. A person involved in the wreck had non-life threatening injuries, Medic reported on Twitter.
The truck overturned near Statesville Road Exit 39, according to the Charlotte Fire Department.
Just after 1 p.m., a wreck involving a gasoline tanker closed Interstate 485 outer loop in Charlotte for about four hours.
This story was originally published September 2, 2022 at 10:02 AM.