Thanksgiving rush triggers heavy congestion on Los Angeles freeways: Watch video

Los Angeles knows traffic, but the Thanksgiving push creates a different kind of gridlock – the kind that turns entire freeways into glowing light trails. That is exactly what played out on Wednesday when millions across the country packed their cars for the holiday week. Aerial footage of the East LA interchange barely moving, a long, slow river of red brake lights, is going viral on social media. The opposite lanes flowed a little quicker, the yellow headlights running like a countercurrent. Thanksgiving travel is projected to hit a record 81.8 million Americans, leading to severe traffic congestion, especially in Los Angeles. (Photo Apu Gomes / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)(Getty Images via AFP) A Thanksgiving tradition, for better or worseLA residents are used to pre-holiday traffic morphing into an all-out crawl. It happens every year, and people still act surprised when the footage returns, as per Fox News. What is different this year is the sheer scale of the rush. AAA expects a record 81.8 million Americans to travel at least 80 kilometers from home during the seven-day holiday window. That is 1.6 million more than last year – and nearly 90 percent of them plan to drive. So the math is not complicated: more cars, more miles, more waiting in traffic that moves two feet and stops again. Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons were forecast to be rough. Sunday might be worse. Fuel prices steady, crowds bigger, and help on standDrivers are not just packing the freeways – they are flooding rental centers too. With rental car prices down around 15 percent from last year, Wednesday became the hot pickup day in cities like Orlando, Atlanta, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and Newark. Gas prices are sitting at an average of $3.06 per gallon, which is calm enough to keep people on the road instead of in the air. But the cost is not what strains the system. It is the volume. AAA handled close to 600,000 roadside emergency calls during last year’s holiday stretch, and with more travelers now, demand could spike again. Dead batteries, flat tires, overheated engines – the busiest travel week in America tends to collect all of them. Thanksgiving has long held the crown as the nation’s most hectic travel period, beating out Memorial Day and even the Fourth of July. This year looks no different. One glance at the LA freeways told the whole story before the holiday even began. Also read: Thanksgiving 2025 travel alert: Heavy traffic expected as millions hit the road and airportsFAQs 1. Which day is the busiest for Thanksgiving travel?Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons typically see the heaviest traffic. 2. How many Americans are traveling this Thanksgiving?AAA projects 81.8 million people will travel at least 80 km.