Severe weather threatens Thanksgiving travel

Severe weather threatens Thanksgiving plans for millions of travelers. A powerful storm will move up the East Coast Wednesday that will bring snow, ice and rain to most of the big cities in the Northeast. AAA has warned drivers to get on the road now or wait until Thursday, reports CBS News correspondent Jeff Pegues.

More people will be traveling on the roads and in the air than last year, and in the Northeast, the weather is the variable everyone is watching. At airports across the country, all eyes are on the arrivals and departures boards.

At Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta, traveler Jeff Weiner is expecting the delays and cancellations to increase.

"There's more regulations checking in and going through your bags and TSA," he said.

But more than 89 percent of people will travel by automobile -- up slightly from last year.

Lower gas prices are believed to be fueling the trend. The national average price is $2.81 a gallon which is 47 cents lower than the average price last year at this time.

Nearly 25 million passengers are expected to fly over this 12-day period, a slight increase over last year. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is warning that passenger counts are expected to be higher than usual and airlines will be using larger aircraft to carry more passengers.

Saturday and Sunday will see a 15 to 18 percent increase in the typical number of travelers.

At Washington D.C. area airports the FAA has launched satellite-based technology that's expected to lead to more direct routes in and out of airports, meaning increased on-time arrivals and departures.

The next generation technology is already in use at several U.S. airports including Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Seattle and San Francisco.

"As a result of these technological innovations, we can handle more traffic in that same infrastructure in the sky, and that means less waiting," FAA administrator Michael Huerta said.

Next generation technology is expected to lead to more fuel-efficient planes and increased safety, and passengers should feel it as planes coming in for smoother landings.