Thursday Afternoon Will Be The Worst Time for Memorial Day Holiday Traffic

Bridget Reed Morawski

WASHINGTON (WMAL) — If you think that leaving Thursday for a holiday weekend beach trip would result in less traffic congestion, think again.

The Council of Governments (COG) has released a report that shows that Thursday afternoon will actually have the longest anticipated commuting times across the region.

After analyzing traffic patterns for each Memorial Day weekend of the past five years, COG determined that Thursday afternoon traffic always resulted in significantly longer commuting times than at any point on Friday.

How much longer?

“We see an average delay ranging from 50-100 percent,” said Ben Hampton, a COG transportation planner. “That means it takes you 50-100 percent longer to reach your destination than it otherwise would in freeflow traffic conditions.”

That means a car trip that usually takes one hour could actually be up to two hours long.

Historical traffic patterns show a dip in congestion after 8pm on the Thursday before Memorial Day. By planning accordingly, Hampton says, you can save yourself a lot of time and stress sitting in traffic.

“In general, the idea is to try to avoid Thursday because of all the traffic out there,” noting that typical regional morning rush hour congestion is practically nonexistent during the holiday weekend.

“Friday morning looks like a good time to hit the road.”