Government Shutdown Could Put Snag In Travel Plans

While the federal government is shutdown, AAA warns travelers will have to wait longer for a passport or change their plans entirely. AAA’s Stephanie Dembowski said the shutdown will definitely snag travel in and out of the country.

“During the last government shutdown in 1996, about 20,000-30,000 visas reportedly went unprocessed each day and 200,000 U.S. applications for passports reportedly went unprocessed,” Dembowski said.

However, she said the impact to airport safety functions should be very minimal, so manpower at security checkpoints and air traffic control should not be compromised.