Planning to fly soon? As summer ends, the air travel scene looks a little different from what it was at the start of summer. Here’s what air travel and airport parking look like if you’re planning to take to the skies now.
The TSA has stated that it will extend the face mask requirement for individuals in the US through January 18, 2022, across all forms of public transport. This includes but is not limited to airports, commercial flights, buses, and rail systems.
American Airlines has announced that it will not be serving alcoholic beverages in the main cabin of its flights until January 2022.
Cancellations and delays (mostly by Spirit and American) plagued travelers even as concerns arose about unruly passengers. Consequently, Federal authorities (FAA) are considering fines of more than $500,000 against commercial airline travelers. According to authorities, there have been instances where passengers refused to wear masks, attacked flight attendants, and even flung baggage across the cabin. The Government Aviation Administration announced $531,545 in fines against 34 passengers accused of being rowdy on board on Thursday, the single highest announcement of federal fines since the start of a nationwide campaign earlier this year, bringing the total for this year to more than $1 million.
Air travel statistics from August 16- August 22, 2021
All of this is happening in the backdrop of declining air travel numbers. The past week saw fewer Americans taking to the skies with just 12,852,170 TSA travel screenings than 13,547,894 last week. August 16 saw the highest travel numbers with 2,576, 965 while August 21 saw the least with only 2,039,233 people traveling on that day.
The international travel situation still looks kind of dicey, with travel restrictions firmly in place across the globe. The US Department of Homeland Security stated on Friday that nonessential travel restrictions at the country’s land borders with Canada and Mexico will be extended until at least September 21. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the United States has restricted nonessential travel along both borders, with exceptions provided for cross-border trade, US citizens and lawful permanent residents, and people going for medical or educational purposes.
The airline industry is hoping that a late summer upswing in travel will help get travel numbers off the ground again. A recent survey by The Vacationer seems to suggest that the upcoming Labor Day weekend will have the best travel numbers this year thus far, surpassing the number of travelers who took advantage of the Fourth of July holiday to travel. There’s a twist, though. While the poll shows 137 million Americans (53 percent) intend to travel for the Labor Day vacation, the majority of those (37 percent) intend to travel by car, with only 12 percent intending to catch a flight to their destination.
That said, it’s still best to book your airport parking spot ahead of your travel. This is not just to lock in lower parking rates but also to make sure you have a completely safe, contactless airport parking experience. This holds especially true for folks who’ll need LAX parking, JFK parking, or O’Hare Airport parking during the upcoming Labor day weekend. As always, we strongly recommend that you follow all of CDC’s travel guidelines to ensure that your Labor Day travels are safe.
Check out more blogs on the best parking spots in your city, the most affordable insurance for your car, and top-rated car washes near you.
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Renée Martin is a travel and car expert who focuses on smart car ownership and road travel in the U.S. For the past 6 years, she’s been helping make car ownership, driving, and trip planning easier for everyday travelers.
