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Travelers Hitting The Roads Tuesday Will Face Busiest Day Of Thanksgiving Holiday

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Thanksgiving might not be until Thursday, but Tuesday was expected to be the busiest day of the holiday weekend on the roads.

If you hit the road between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m., the AAA has predicted your trip could take three times longer than it would under optimal driving conditions.

In Chicago, the worst spot will be Interstate 90 West at Interstate 190 West near O'Hare International Airport.

"I do drive a lot through those roads, and it's bad enough when it's not three times the travel times, so I can't imagine driving through that right now," Miguel Flores said.

According to AAA and INRIX, interstates around the city will be extremely congested, because the holiday travelers are expected to combine with commuters on the roads, leading to major congestion.

"I have to travel every day in this, and it is difficult, especially when traffic through the holidays and special events in Chicago happen," James Fitzgerald said.

Sean Williams said he expects to be in the middle of all that traffic while driving for Lyft.

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"For me, it's horrible, but for the passengers it's even worse, because they're paying just to sit in traffic," he said.

More than 45 million Americans are expected to take a Thanksgiving road trip. That's up by more than 3% over last year.

Gas for all those road trips is at its highest point for the Thanksgiving holiday in two years, at an average of $2.87 per gallon in Chicago.

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