Friday flight cancellations top 2,500, disrupting holiday travel

(CNN) — 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.

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.

Record-low temperatures were recorded Thursday in some locations in the West and South.

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.

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.

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 on Thursday warning customers traveling in the Midwest over the next two days may have their trips delayed or canceled altogether.

The bus company listed more than a dozen cities from West Virginia to Minnesota as among those impacted. They include:

• Charleston, West Virginia

• Chicago

• Cleveland

• Dallas

• Danville, Illinois

• Davenport, Iowa

• Denver

• Detroit

• Indianapolis

• Kansas City

• Minneapolis

• St. Louis

• Wichita, Kansas

Ross Levitt, Dave Hennen, Greg Wallace, Paul P. Murphy and Carol Alvarado contributed to this report.