Newark Liberty airport sets passenger travel day record – and it was only a Thursday

Another record could be set Friday, said Tom Carter, TSA's federal security director for New Jersey.

Curtis Tate
NorthJersey
  • Newark's next-busiest travel day was June 25, 2018, with 76,963 passengers screened.
  • 2018 was a record-setting year at the bi-state Port Authority of New York and New Jersey

What's the busiest travel day of the year?

At Newark Liberty International Airport, it wasn't the day before Thanksgiving. It was a Thursday in April. 

The airport set a one-day record Thursday, with 78,118 passengers screened at security checkpoints, according to the Transportation Security Administration.

Newark's next-busiest travel day was June 25, 2018, with 76,963 passengers screened.

Another record could be set Friday, said Tom Carter, TSA's federal security director for New Jersey.

The Transportation Security Administration is expecting Sunday to be the busiest day for Thanksgiving travel as people return home to head back to work after the holiday. A traveler leaves Newark Liberty International Airport on Sunday, November 25, 2018.

With the Easter and Passover holidays, Carter said, "passenger volume will remain high throughout the weekend."

The record volumes at Newark follow a record-setting year for all airports operated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. The bi-state agency saw 137.9 million passengers in 2018. Its other major airports include New York's JFK and LaGuardia.

The Port Authority also operates New York Stewart International Airport and Teterboro Airport in New Jersey.

The Port Authority is undertaking major construction projects at Newark, JFK, LaGuardia and Stewart airports as part of a $32 billion capital investment to upgrade those facilities.

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