AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Austin-Bergstrom International Airport says post-turkey day travel is expected to last for nearly a week after Thanksgiving, a change from the usual two-day dash to get home after the holiday.

Elizabeth Ferrer, a public information officer at AUS, says this staggering of travel is caused in part by fliers having more access to work remotely.

“Because of the options that people have nowadays, to telework, not everybody necessarily is flying out on Sunday, or Monday,” said Ferrer.

The popularity of remote working has expanded over the last few years according to a press release from the U.S. Census Bureau in September.

The data shared shows the number of American workers with the ability to work remotely or at home had tripled from 9 million people in 2019 to 27.6 million people in 2021.

Despite the spreading out of travel days, Ferrer says Sunday and Monday are still expected to see the peak of the airport’s flights which is on par with years past.

Current projections, Ferrer says, expect the number of fliers to surpass more than 30,000. Ferrer says despite the usual constraints that come with holiday travel, this spread will likely ease operations for airport employees and travelers.

“Thanksgiving travel is just going to heighten that a little bit, but so far because it is so spread out, it hasn’t been challenging for travelers – other than moving a little slower through the terminal,” said Ferrer.

She says passengers should still arrive at the airport at least two hours before their flight to ensure they have plenty of time to check bags and pass through security.