Thanksgiving Eve travelers faced gridlock at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport on Wednesday as construction and holiday crowds turned the drive from the toll plaza into a crawl.

Chopper footage showed bumper-to-bumper traffic snaking through airport roads as travelers scrambled to make flights. Some people abandoned vehicles and walked, pushing luggage through the congestion.

"It was a lot, it was tough, it was tough getting to the airport, it was tough trying to get through, it was tough getting bags," said a man who did not feel comfortable being named.

Check the latest wait times here.

Delays stretch beyond 30 minutes

Around noon, it took CBS News Texas crews more than 30 minutes to get from the toll booth to Terminal C because of traffic and heavy congestion caused by ongoing construction. An airport employee said many travelers missed their flights because of the delays.

"It was slow," said John and Inalee Sell. "A lot of people coming in and out of the lanes, some people looking like they were going to smush right into you if you didn't get out of the way."

Travelers urged to arrive early

Margaret Braswell-Donoho, flying to Alaska to see her daughter, arrived at the airport three hours ahead of her flight.

"Coming into the service roads, coming into the airport, they were packed. They were really packed," Braswell-Donoho said. "Be prepared and just leave early and be nice. You know airport make people cranky and it only takes one smile to make another person smile."

Airport expects record holiday crowds

DFW Airport expects 3 million travelers over the Thanksgiving holiday period, with at least 269,000 passing through on Sunday.

"We want you to consider plans that you haven't before, so that might be taking public transit to the airport," said Rob Himler, senior manager of construction communications at DFW Airport. "So, you can avoid the holiday traffic and the holiday bustle here at the airport."

Advice for avoiding congestion

As you gear up for Thanksgiving food ingestion, consider airport alternatives so you don't get trapped in congestion.

"They advise you to get here early, which is very true, leave early, and get out here," said Janice Naderkhani.