Thanksgiving travel kicks off in Oklahoma

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — Whether you're hitting the road or skies before Thanksgiving, holiday travel is now all gas and no brakes.

AAA reports 9 out of 10 Thanksgiving travelers will be traveling before gobbling down the turkey. That translates to 640,000 Oklahomans hitting the pavement. It's best if you know the work zones across the state.

"We have about 50 major projects that are going to impact the interstate and state highways and the Turnpikes," said Bryce Boyer with the Oklahoma Department of Transportation.

Starting in the metro, if you're headed east on I-40, you'll run into the construction at Douglas.

If you're Tulsa bound, be aware of lane narrowing along the Turner Turnpike.

If you're going south, you'll see the project at I-240 and I-35, near Crossroads Mall.

A little farther south, is the I-35 and Hwy 9 diverging diamond interchange near Goldsby.

Then all the way to the Red River, there's the I-35 widening project in Thackerville.

"They're going to have two lanes in each direction open as best they can throughout the holiday weekend," said Bryce.

The best navigation tool will be your Drive Oklahoma app, which lays out all of the construction sites.

"It also gives you access to 400 real-time traffic cameras both in the Oklahoma City and Tulsa metro areas," said Boyer.

Some travelers would rather use wings than tires.

The OKC International Airport said around 7,000 people will by flying out Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.

The busiest times at the airport are between 3:30 a.m. and 8:00 a.m.

"You definitely want to be here two hours before you board your flight," said Stacey Hamm with the airport. "Our security checkpoint opens up at 4 a.m."

The next rush is around lunch time.

Airport officials want you to have your ID, documents, and ticket numbers ready.

If you're boarding with a furry friend, make sure your airline knows. Each one has different rules.

"If you have not done that and you show up to the airport with your pet, you may not get through the process as quickly and they may not let you fly," said Hamm.