Holiday Travel

Fort Worth's American Airlines predicts record-breaking Thanksgiving travel

American Airlines plane gassed up and ready for takeoff.

Photo courtesy of American Airlines

Travel during the holidays is anticipated to be up up up, according to a release from American Airlines. The Fort Worth-based carrier says that it expects to welcome more than 7.8 million customers — a record for the airline — during the Thanksgiving travel period, which runs from November 16 to November 28.

This holiday travel period will be the airline’s busiest ever and comes as American has been running the most reliable operation of any U.S. network carrier for the past 14 months.

That includes the summer 2023 travel period, when American led its major network competitors in completion factor and on-time departures.

How about a bulleted list with some numbers:

70,000-plus scheduled flights
7.8 million customers
500,000+ more customers than the same period last year

How about another bulleted list with stats on the busiest travel days:

The busiest travel day will be November 26, with 6,100 departures.
The second busiest day will be November 27, with nearly 6,000 departures.

The pandemic appears to be over.

American's COO David Seymour says in a statement that times for the airline are very very good.

“We are running the best operation in our airline’s history,” Seymour says.

DART News

DART launches scooter parking pilot program at 4 Dallas rail stations

DART

Scooter parking for DART

In a new pilot program, Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) is making room for scooters: According to a release, four DART stations will now have dedicated parking zones for scooters.

DART will unveil six designated scooter parking zones at four of its highest-traffic stations. Each of the zones will be specifically marked and provide a controlled space for users to park scooters, leaving them clear of walkways, platforms and rail or bus paths, where they can disrupt train and bus service.

The designated scooter parking zones can be found at:

CBD West Transit Center – just east and behind the bus shelter
Victory Station – next to tap and go pay stations along the walkway to the American Airlines Center and next to the southernmost crossing at the rail platform
EBJ/Union Station – on the sidewalk near the north and south entrances to Union Station
SMU/Mockingbird Station – next to bike racks along the walkway from station platform

The pilot program is expected to run a few months beginning in December.

DART will collaborate with the City of Dallas to process the data to scooter rental companies to ensure that the scooters are equipped with geofencing technology allowing the marking of their locations.

With motorized scooters becoming a common mode of "micro transit" for commuters, DART hopes to clear clutter and walking hazards for rail and bus customers, while also provide those who use scooters a quick and reliable way to access or park them.

“Whether people like them or not, scooters have become a popular form of transportation across our service area,” says DART VP of capital design and construction Trey Walker. “We’re acknowledging this fact while attempting to get ahead of scooter clutter at our stations with this pilot program. We want to ensure that our transit stations remain safe, and we continue to maximize efficiency with our train and bus operations.”

Scooter companies, Lime and Bird, are also partnering with DART to incorporate scooter locations near transit stations on the GoPass app, making it easier for riders to find scooters to utilize and complete their journey. DART staff will also monitor the usage of the scooter parking zones and gather public feedback regarding their effectiveness during the pilot.