ATLANTA — The holiday travel rush in Atlanta is off with a bang.
On Wednesday, one of the busiest travel days ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, officials at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport said it clocked the busiest morning rush in the airport's history. Ever.
According to the airport, Transportation Security Administration agents screened just more than 32,000 passengers at security checkpoints by 8 a.m.
The relatively smooth, record-travel morning comes after a recent stretch of Friday morning woes for travelers in the security lines at the Atlanta airport. On two recent Friday mornings in October, passengers reported long, snaking lines weaving through the main atrium and back out through baggage claim areas. Typically, the volume thinned out by the late morning.
It appeared to be smooth sailing, though, on Wednesday. At its peak, officials at the world's busiest airport said the wait time stretched to 37 minutes. All of the security checkpoint lanes were open, the airport added.
Nationally, the TSA said it screened more than 2.6 million passengers Tuesday and it expected another 2.7 million passengers to come through airport security Wednesday. On Sunday, it expects to screen 2.9 million passengers, which would surpass a previous record set on June 30.
The holiday travel season will also test the Federal Aviation Administration, which faces shortages of air traffic controllers at key facilities that caused reductions in flights to the New York City area this summer and fall.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said during a news conference Monday that the government prepared for holiday travel by hiring more air traffic controllers, opening new air routes along the East Coast and providing grants to airports for snowplows and deicing equipment.
Airlines have also added tens of thousands of employees in the last couple of years, and Southwest says it bought more winter equipment to keep planes moving even during sub-freezing temperatures.
AAA predicts that 55.4 million people will travel at least 50 miles from home between Wednesday and Sunday, the third-highest forecast ever by the auto club. AAA says most of them - 49.1 million - will drive.
Drivers will get a break from last year on gasoline prices. AAA says the nationwide average for gas was down to $3.28 a gallon on Wednesday, compared with $3.63 a year ago.
Material from the Associated Press contributed to this report.