(The following report by Bob Kur appeared on the WTOP Radio website on November 15.)
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Amtrak plans to have additional trains handling the Thanksgiving holiday crush, but you’ll want to plan ahead.
Some trains that normally don’t require reservations will require reservations next week. Amtrak says that for Thanksgiving week, trains will carry about 30 percent more riders.
The busiest travel days will be Tuesday, Wednesday and Sunday afternoons. The day before Thanksgiving the number of passengers on Amtrak trains will be 80 percent higher than on a typical Wednesday.
You can save money if you travel off-peak, especially the Monday before Thanksgiving and the Friday after it.
Even without the holiday, D.C.’s Union Station is the second busiest passenger train station in the country, and the Northeast Corridor is the country’s busiest passenger line.