Editorial: Holiday travel relief

Saturday, Nov. 17, 2007 | 7:19 a.m.

With the holiday air travel crunch already under way, federal officials are taking short-term steps to ease congestion.

President Bush and officials from the Federal Aviation Administration and the Transportation Department announced Thursday they will open portions of military airspace to commercial flights along the entire East Coast through the busy Thanksgiving travel period. Federal transportation and aviation officials also called on airlines to call in extra staff to handle the check-in and baggage processes.

In addition, the Transportation Department has proposed rules that include raising from $400 to $800 the fee paid to travelers who are delayed or bumped from flights and demanding airlines give federal officials better information on why flights are delayed. Those rules have not been finalized and would not go into effect until summer at the earliest.

Federal transportation figures show 26 percent of the nation's flights were delayed or canceled during the first five months of this year, making it the worst year since 1995. It is heartening to see the Bush administration taking some initial, if temporary, steps to relieve congested air travel, although it certainly has taken long enough.

But travelers must be realistic. Industry officials predict air travel will be up 4 percent this Thanksgiving over last, with 27 million people taking flights during the holiday travel period that started Friday. Flying at peak times is akin to commuting at rush hour. Delays are a given. Travelers hoping to avoid undue delays should choose their airlines wisely, show up early for flights and bring along a good book - just in case.