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Looming Holiday Weekend Storm Already Causing Massive Traffic Jams, Hundreds Of Flights Canceled

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – A winter storm closing in on the Tri-state area is forcing millions of people to cut their holiday weekends short and get out of dodge ahead of the snow.

Unfortunately, it's slow going for the drivers on the hectic highways.

CBS2's Christina Fan has been talking to some of those travelers and has heard numerous complaints Saturday about the bumper to bumper traffic families have been stuck in.

Despite the jams, they still say better today than tomorrow.

"It's been awful, slow going, a lot of stop and go," said Tyler D'Alfonso of Virginia.

"It was a 40 something minute slowdown, which turned into an hour and a half slowdown. It's been kind of crazy," Vanessa Zambrano of Maryland added.

The roads are not normally this packed until Sunday – but with millions in the northeast expected to be hit by rain, snow, or a mushy combination of both on Sunday and Monday – many drivers decided to head home early this Thanksgiving weekend.

MORE: New York Weather: 11/30 CBS2 Saturday Forecast, Widespread Winter Storm Expected Sunday

New York City is expected to receive up to four inches of snow.

"We're really glad we left today instead of tomorrow because that would've sucked we would've been snowed in," Jade Durant said.

At the Port Authority Bus Terminal, travelers like Susan Sowerby moved up their itinerary too after hearing about the ominous forecast.

flights canceled
(Credit: CBSN New York)

"My mom texted this morning from Kansas City, asked me if I was worried about getting home on time. I had spent the night at the airport last year getting stuck from a snowstorm so I decided to go ahead and change a day early," Sowerby explained.

Delays were already lighting up the board at Newark Airport as the storm impacted western parts of the country. As of Saturday afternoon, about 380 flights had been canceled and more than 5,600 delayed in the U.S. according to FlightAware.

"It gets hairy without snow, so when there is snow it's really going to be complete chaos. We use the airport all the time here, snow time is the worst time," New Jersey resident Steve Keisman said.

American Airlines and Delta are offering waivers to eligible travelers to rebook their flights because of the storm.

Stay with CBS New York for the latest forecast in your area

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