With the Chicago area in the path of a major snowstorm hitting on a busy holiday weekend, officials across the city and suburbs are preparing to keep the roads as clear as possible for travelers following the Thanksgiving holiday.

Officials with municipalities across the area said they are ready. Snow-fighting trucks are loaded with salt and drivers are set to hit the roads.

Tinley Park Mayor Michael Glotz said his village's crews have prepared days in advance ahead of this weekend's winter storm, which could bring up to 12 inches of snow to the Chicago area. They preloaded their trucks on Wednesday.

"All of our drivers are all [International Union of Operating Engineers] Local 150 operators. They're well-trained, and they're ready for this," Glotz said. "We have 12 routes. We have 24 drivers. So there are two shifts of 12, and so they are already loaded. They're ready to go."

The Tinley Park snow plow fleet will be among many crews tackling accumulating snow.

Illinois Department of Transportation spokesperson Maria Castaneda said the state's snow plow crews have been preparing throughout the week to make sure expressways and other state highways and roads are kept clear of snow and ice.

"This is something IDOT prepares for all year," she said. "We were also out pre-treating some of the areas that tend to freeze up more ahead of time, and that is your bridges, your overpasses, those ramps."

The city of Chicago also has been preparing for the storm.

"We've got plenty of salt on the ground; over 400,000 tons of salt on the ground," Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation Commissioner Cole Stallard said.

The city said the snowstorm is a good reminder that the winter overnight parking ban goes into effect early Monday morning.

"So, when you're going into Monday, that 3 o'clock in the morning we're going to have tow trucks out there, clearing 107 streets that fall on the bus routes," Stallard said.

At O'Hare International Airport, travelers on Friday night were thankful to beat out the storm.

Nikko Graff said he originally was scheduled to fly back to Chicago on Saturday after spending Thanksgiving with family in Denver, but was glad he was able to change his plans to beat the snow.

"I actually originally scheduled mine for tomorrow, and then moved it up preemptively to get ahead of the storm," he said.

The Chicago Department of Aviation said more than 640 crew members will be working to keep roads and runways around O'Hare and Midway clear of snow, but do expect flights to be impacted.

For Graff, getting ahead of the storm means he can reflect on a holiday full of gratitude.

"Always good to see family, get out of Chicago for a little bit, but couldn't have asked for a better time," he said.

Both United and American airlines said they have issued a travel waiver and travel notice, respectively, for passengers impacted in Chicago, allowing flexibility to change affected flights without fees or paying fare differences. They encouraged travelers to check their website for details ahead of their flights.