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Thanksgiving travel translates to long waits, parking issues at Sacramento airport

Airport officials say they plan to keep signs up warning travelers about the 30 minute shuttle delays through the holiday travel season.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — During the busiest travel time of the week, people heading to the Sacramento International Airport wanted to give themselves a lot longer than just two hours.

Many were concerned about finding a place to park and dealing with traffic to even get to the airport.

“I wanted to get here five hours early," said Steven Devoe, a traveler.

People like Devoe flooded into the airport early, and ended up having a little extra time on their hands. Devoe and his brother were heading out to Dallas for the holiday.

READ ALSO: Two in Arizona form Thanksgiving tradition after 2016 mistaken text

“I was concerned about the traffic, because it takes about an hour to drive here and this is the closest airport to where we live," he said.

Despite the early arrivals, the brothers and other travelers were greeted with a sour note - a warning of 30 minute shuttle delays on both the west and east parking lots.

Hackett said she chose to avoid that hassle altogether and just parked in the garage instead.

“Well, that’s kind of why we decided not to even go. He was looking at the parking spaces online out there, and they were saying that they were just filling up really fast... up here in the parking thing, there was 1,600 (spots) still available, so that’s why we’re here," said Barbara Hackett, a traveler from Auburn.

"So, a few dollars more, is well worth it," she added.

Still, in the afternoon’s holiday rush, most people found themselves breathing a little easier as they showed up in between the peak travel times.

"It’s Murphy’s rule. If you don’t get here two hours early, you’re going to be stressed out, but, if you get here two hours early, you’re going to have too much free time. That’s the way it works," said Jared Thomas, a traveler.

Airport officials say they plan to keep signs up warning travelers about the 30 minute shuttle delays through the holiday travel season. Due to those delays, they are urging travelers to show up no less than two hours before their departure time.

READ ALSO: Thanks to high winds, Thanksgiving parade balloons might be grounded this year

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