Today was busy and Monday is expected to be even busier at Denver International Airport as travelers head home from their holiday sojourns.
About 153,899 people had tickets to fly out of DIA today, and 156,475 scheduled for Monday, said airport spokesperson Erica Gingerich.
“Drink a big cup of patience,” she advised travelers. “It’s going to be one of the busiest days of the holiday season.”
New security measures related to Friday’s alleged terrorist attempt in Detroit have not added much, if any, to wait times.
“The reason there are lines is because it’s Christmas,” she said.
Last Wednesday was the busiest day at DIA: 158,276 travelers.
The airport is on schedule for 1,046,063 travelers, about 3,200 more passengers than those who used DIA between Jan. 22 and Jan. 28 last year.
But the load is not dramatically heavy for the 10th-busiest passenger airport in the world. DIA averages about 140,398 travelers a day, or a total of 51.2 million annually.
Last Thursday, the day before Christmas, DIA had 135,561 passengers, and on Christmas Day there were 136,994. Saturday saw the first wave of return travelers, with 150,785 passengers on DIA flights.
Security lines were averaging only about 5 minutes this afternoon, but peaked to about 20 minutes during busier times, Gingerich said.
She advised travelers to plan on being at the airport about two hours before their departure as a precautionary measure.
Airport parking lots have stayed consistently full during the holiday week, so people leaving town on normal business should check parking availability by watching the electronic message boards when approaching DIA for parking information.
Parking and flight information also is available on the airport’s website, .
Travelers also can call 303-342-8477 for current wait times at security screening and 303-342-7275 for parking space availability.
Joey Bunch: 303-954-1174 or jbunch@denverpost.com
