Speeding jumps 68% during Thanksgiving, Cambridge Mobile Telematics

AAA projects that nearly 82 million people will travel at least 50 miles from home over Thanksgiving week, from Nov. 25 to Dec. 1, and this year's domestic travel forecast predicts an additional 1.6 million travelers compared to last Thanksgiving–which sets an overall record for Thanksgiving travel numbers. At least 73 million people will travel by car, AAA projects, which is 90% of Thanksgiving travelers.

According to a Cambridge Mobile Telematics (CMT) road risk analysis, risky driving behaviors significantly increase during Thanksgiving travel; speeding increases by 68% on Thanksgiving day, compared with other Thursdays, and time spent speeding is 187% higher at 7 a.m. Distracted driving increases as well, surging 10.8% on the actual holiday compared to other Thursdays, and distraction is more than 20% higher between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m.

Thanksgiving week is one of the busiest weeks for travel, according to CMT, and many drivers travel long distances before and after the holiday. CMT analyzed distracted driving and speeding on Thanksgiving from 2022 to 2024 and compared Thanksgiving day to the Thursdays before and after, as well as the Wednesday before and Friday after the holiday. CMT defines screen interaction distraction as tapping on the phone screen while driving over 9 mph and speeding as a vehicle traveling 9.3 mph over the speed limit for at least 300 feet. CMT analyzed driving behavior data from more than 60 million vehicle trips. 

The surrounding Wednesday and Black Friday see a rise in these riskier behaviors, as well, with drivers more likely to speed at a 27% increase on Wednesday and 32% on Friday. Speeding peaks on Wednesday after 5 p.m. at a 63% increase and stays 37% higher until 8 p.m. Friday afternoons, between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m., speeding rises 65%.