TYLER, Texas — Christmas is around the corner, and East Texans are finishing their last-minute shopping in Tyler.
Tyler is the main shopping hub for East Texans, which means an increase in people, cars, traffic, and a big economic impact this time of the year.
"That's an advantage for being the largest community in the region. Everybody comes here to get their goods and services that's how it becomes an important piece of the whole economic pie," said Henry Bell, Tyler Chamber of Commerce president.
Bell said during the holidays, people within a 50 to 75-mile radius will come to Tyler to shop.
Jailana Colsun is one of the thousands of East Texans, who make the drive to Tyler. She drove from Lindale to get some Christmas presents for her family.
"It's fun in general. You just have to have a plan. I want to get in and out. And like a lot of things are gone. So you're trying to get there faster. There's been a lot more traffic. It's hard to find a parking spot. It's been a lot more crowded," Colsun said.
But that doesn’t come as a surprise. A report from Texas A&M shows Tyler is home to one of the 100 most congested roads in all of Texas. It’s the stretch of south Broadway Avenue from Loop 323 to Toll 49.
"More cars on the road means more impatient drivers, more wrecks, people still try the speed limit. And you got to kind of slow down a little bit more than usual because of the congestion of traffic," said JH Burge, sergeant and traffic investigator for Tyler PD.
Burge said during the holidays, the most traffic on the roads is between 4:30 and 9 p.m.