Winter weather continues to disrupt holiday travel across the United States on Friday, leaving travelers facing delays and cancellations during one of the busiest times of the year.

More than 5,300 Friday flights have already been canceled as of 7:40 p.m. ET, after nearly 2,700 cancellations on Thursday, according to flight tracking site FlightAware.

Thursday's cancellations represented about 11% of U.S.-based carriers' scheduled flights, according to FlightAware, with nearly half of flights delayed on Thursday.

Cancellations were highest Friday at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, New York's LaGuardia, Chicago O'Hare, Denver International and Detroit Metro Airport, according to FlightAware data. In Canada, Toronto topped flight cancellations.

In addition to the cancellations, there had been more than 9,100 delays as of 7:40 p.m. ET among the flights still going out.

For Saturday, more than 570 flights have already been canceled. But for Christmas Day, just 10 flights have been canceled so far.

Slammed by wind-whipped snow, Buffalo Niagara International Airport in New York had to shut down flights entirely.

"The Buffalo Airport Airfield has closed due to hazardous weather conditions," and all flights scheduled for the evening have been canceled, according to a tweet from the airport's official Twitter account.

At airports in Cleveland and Grand Rapids, Michigan, more than 70% of the flights have been canceled.

Ground stops

The Federal Aviation Administration posted ground stops Friday morning for flights bound for Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina, American Airlines' second-largest hub, and Reagan National Airport near Washington, DC, because of deicing.

In the Pacific Northwest, FAA notices showed flights bound to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and Portland International Airport were also under ground stops Friday morning because of snow and ice.

The FAA says the major air pressure changes associated with this storm will trigger high winds at airports from Boston down to Atlanta.

Airports in Chicago and Denver saw the bulk of cancellations and delays on Thursday. Chicago O'Hare International Airport was logging average delays Thursday of almost three hours due to snow and ice.

Storm has bad timing

An arctic blast and a rapidly intensifying winter storm have come at an unfortunate time for travelers trying to join family and friends for the holidays.

Airlines have issued winter weather waivers allowing passengers to rebook at no cost within a limited time period.

The growing cancellations make it harder for passengers racing against the clock and weather to rebook and arrive in time for Christmas. Flights this year were already more crowded than they've been previously — even before the storm disrupted travel schedules.

"We hear about how travel volume is still down, 5 or 10 percent, but what many folks might not have realized is that the number of flights in the sky is actually down more like 15 or 20 percent," Scott Keyes of Scott's Cheap Flights told CNN.

"The planes that are actually flying are more full today than they were pre-pandemic. That's why there's not as many empty seats to switch onto if you do find your flight gets canceled or delayed," Keyes said.

Here are links to major airlines' waivers that allow rebooking without penalty during a short window:

Train and bus service hit, too

Amtrak has also been forced to delay or cancel passenger service for some lines in the Midwest and Northeast.

Click here for details about rail service disruptions.

In its notice, Amtrak said "customers with reservations on trains that are being modified will typically be accommodated on trains with similar departure times or another day.

"Amtrak will waive additional charges for customers looking to change their reservation during the modified schedule by calling our reservation center at 1-800-USA-RAIL."

Meanwhile Greyhound, the largest provider of intercity bus service, issued a service alert Thursday evening indicating that trips in the Midwest or upper Northeast may be canceled or disrupted.

In its alert posted here, the company lists nearly 20 cities as among those impacted. It advised passengers to check bustracker.greyhound.com for the latest information about specific journeys.

Greyhound said riders can call 1-833-233-8507 to reschedule.

Winter weather is also impacting the services of regional intercity bus company Jefferson Lines, which operates in 14 states.

In an alert posted on its website, the company nearly 30 routes have been canceled for Friday, with a few cancellations listed on Saturday and Sunday. Cities impacted by the cancellations include Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Duluth and Kansas City.

Affected travelers can consult the Bus Tracker or call 1-858-800-8898.

HEBRON, Ky. — CVG Airport officials expect Sunday will be one of the airport’s busiest days during the holiday travel period.

WCPO crews saw long lines at airline check-in counters around 5 and 6 a.m.

Flight cancellations are still impacting travelers with thousands of flights canceled across the country. In the last 24 hours, CVG Airport has seen 25 flight cancellations, according to tracking website FlightAware. Cancellations have been caused by winter weather and staffing shortages due to COVID-19 cases.

Overall, travel is up this year compared to last.

“We do expect to serve about 90% of the volume that we saw pre pandemic, so in 2019,” said CVG spokeswoman Mindy Kershner. “We're not quite there yet to normal levels of volume, but we're getting close.”

CVG officials urge travelers to track their flight status online to stay in the loop on delays and closures. Kershner also recommends arriving to the airport early, about two hours before your flight is scheduled to take off.

For drivers, AAA says the worst traffic on the roads will be between 2 and 6 p.m. AAA says drivers will experience the least traffic before 1 p.m.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. —

The upcoming Thanksgiving weekend is expected to be the busiest travel holiday in more than two years. Experts, like travel insurance expert Omar Kaywan, say travelers need to plan ahead.

“This particular Thanksgiving weekend we are expecting about 80 to 90% pre-COVID traffic,” Kaywan said.

As things start to get back to normal, the travel expert says it will be some time before airline travel gets there.

“The last couple of weeks we’ve seen thousands of people stranded in airports and not know what to do,” Kaywan said.

He says airlines are doing all they can to handle the return to normal levels, but it’s been a struggle.

“Flights are getting delayed. Airlines are dealing with a lot of different issues, shortage of staff is just one of them. The vaccination mandate, although it has been delayed until January 1, it’s still out there and still a problem for them to be dealing with,” Kaywan said.

He says travel insurance makes more sense now than ever.

“One thing that COVID has been teaching us more so than ever before is that you need to travel with travel insurance,” Kaywan said.

Kaywan says insurance can get you rooms in local hotels if flights are canceled. It can also get refunds you might not get from the airline.

“We also recommend using a flight tracker or Flight Aware so you know exactly where the origin of your flight is,” Kaywan said.

The expert says this year, if possible, travel a day before or a day after the peak on Thanksgiving weekend. He says the most important thing is to stay patient before the flight.

Kaywan says the best bet is just to download a travel insurance app and use it as you need it.

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SPIKE IN COVID-19 CASES. NEWSCENTER 5’S TED WAYMAN IS LIVE AT LOGAN AIRPOR TONIGHT. 10? -- TED? >> FOR THE MOST PART, FLIGHTS HAVE BEEN ON TIME BUT IT COULD GET EASIER LAT TONIGHT. NO BIG CROWDS TO REPORT. TSA’S REPORTING A MILLION TRAVELERS WERE SCREENED A AIRPORTS NATIONWIDE YESTERDAY. LOTS OF BUSINESSES WILL REOPEN TOMORROW AND MANY SCHOOLS WILL BE BACK IN SESSION. AS FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS MANY ARE NOT BACK IN BOSTON YET AND MANY WILL BE VIRTUAL WHEN CLASSES RESUME LATER IN JANUARY. TRAVELERS WE SPOKE WITH THIS AFTERNOON SAID SKIES WERE NOT TOO CROWDED AND TRAVEL WAS RELATIVELY EASY. >> OBVIOUSLY PEOPLE ARE MORE ON EDGE BUT I DO NOT THINK IT HAS BEEN PARTICULARLY DIFFICULT. >> RELATIVELY QUIET TODAY. >> YES, I’VE BEEN HEARING ABOUT ROW IS NO LONGER BLOCKED OFF, WHICH IS NOT GREAT. HOPEFULLY, EVERYONE IS WEARING A MASK AND STAYING SAFE. >> AS WE HEARD FROM MIKE, THE WEATHER IS EXPECTED HERE LATER TONIGHT AND TOMORROW MORNING. AIRLINES HOPE IT WILL NOT HAVE AN EFFECT ON FLIGHTS COMING ARE GOING. BUT, AS NOISE, CHECK WITH YOUR AIRLINE.

Concern over spike in COVID-19 cases with post-holiday travel

Updated: 7:25 PM EST Jan 3, 2021

Massachusetts residents who traveled for the holidays are returning home before heading back to work and school on Monday, and there is concern that the amount of holiday travel in the state and across the county will lead to a spike in COVID-19 cases.The Transportation Security Administration announced that it screened nearly 1.2 million travelers at airports across the country on Saturday, which was the day after New Year's Day.That number is similar to the number of travelers that the TSA screened in the days following Christmas. According to its own data, the TSA screened over 1 million travelers for five consecutive days from Dec. 26 through Dec. 30.Watch the video above to learn more about this story.

BOSTON —

Massachusetts residents who traveled for the holidays are returning home before heading back to work and school on Monday, and there is concern that the amount of holiday travel in the state and across the county will lead to a spike in COVID-19 cases.

The Transportation Security Administration announced that it screened nearly 1.2 million travelers at airports across the country on Saturday, which was the day after New Year's Day.

That number is similar to the number of travelers that the TSA screened in the days following Christmas. According to its own data, the TSA screened over 1 million travelers for five consecutive days from Dec. 26 through Dec. 30.

Watch the video above to learn more about this story.