Georgia officials release metro Atlanta Thanksgiving travel guide

ATLANTA - Millions of people will be hitting the roads this week ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday.

The Georgia Department of Transportation created a holiday travel planning guide to help make holiday travel as smooth as possible.

"We broke it down to certain areas of metro Atlanta and from there we analyzed peak travel times, when you're in the clear and when to avoid getting on the road," Georgia Department of Transportation Regional Traffic Operations Manager Matt Glasser said.

For the second straight year, GDOT released the travel guide based on trends they analyzed from 2018.

"We noticed that a lot of people leave around noon on Wednesday," Glasser said. "So if you are trying to leave early and you're taking Wednesday off, then don't wait until noon. Try to leave in the morning and if not, then leave in the afternoon after you finish your workday."

Glasser told FOX 5 the typical rush hour we see around 5 or 6 p.m. moves up about four hours the day before Thanksgiving. 

"We hope these guides help people who are getting out of town but also helps people who are staying in the area," Glasser said. 

Glasser wants to remind drivers to not text and drive and to also be aware of shoppers on Friday.

"Folks will be going shopping on Black Friday, so just exercise caution and patience," Glasser said.