Tarmac delays of three hours or more at U.S. airports reached a record low in 2014,

according to the U.S. Department of Transportation's Air Travel Consumer Report. For the full year, 30 domestic flights at U.S. airports had tarmac delays longer than three hours, and nine international flights had delays longer than four hours. That showed a decrease from 2013, when 84 domestic flights and 55 international flights faced delays of a similar length. In 2009, prior to the department's rule requiring flights to give travelers the opportunity to deplane when tarmac delays exceeded three hours, there were 868 domestic flights with tarmac delays of that length. U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx in a statement said 2014 results show that "airlines have gotten the message" regarding tarmac delays and that the U.S. DOT would "continue to aggressively enforce our tarmac delay rules."