Travel for the Thanksgiving holiday is expected to rebound this year with buses and trains a popular mode of transportation.
The number of train and bus passengers using Union Station in Springfield had been running about 35 percent behind pre-pandemic levels until the last two months when ridership crept back closer to what it was in 2019, said Nichole Sweeney, the property manager at the transportation hub.
“We have really high hopes for a lot of ridership this holiday season,” she said.
AAA predicts 54.6 million people will travel 50 miles, or more, from home this Thanksgiving. Most of those trips will be by car. 4.5 million people will fly and 1.4 million will use other modes of transportation that include trains and buses.
During the Thanksgiving holiday period, Amtrak expects to be operating at 98 percent capacity. CTrail is adding three additional northbound and southbound trains on the Hartford Line on Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday. Peter Pan Bus Line expects ridership will exceed pre-pandemic levels.
Union Station can easily accommodate the additional passengers, said Sweeney.
“No need to come 4 hours ahead – this is not the airport – an hour is more than enough (time),” she said. “Just be patient because there will be a lot of people coming through.”
On the eve of what is one of the busiest travel days of the year, Union Station took on a festive atmosphere.
The Springfield Redevelopment Authority hosted a holiday tree lighting featuring a performance by the High School of Science and Technology choir.
Mayor Domenic Sarno said he hopes when people walk through the concourse of Union Station and catch a glimpse of the tree it will put a smile on their face.
“You can’t put a price tag on the smile on someone’s face when they’re traveling home or coming back after seeing loved ones,” Sarno said.
Massachusetts Congressman Richard Neal, the Springfield Democrat who secured more than $100 million to restore and redevelop the historic train station, said he was thrilled by all the hustle and bustle.
“This is just what we want – activity here,” Neal said. “We want a lot of pedestrian activity, bus activity, train activity and eventually we will get east-west rail as well.”
When a $3 million cybersecurity center is built inside Union Station next year it will mean that 80 percent of the building will be occupied.
