Monday may become the worst day in history for traffic around the Charlotte region, with a potential 2.1 million people traveling out of South Carolina after the ‘Great American Eclipse‘.
South Carolina is the last state on the path of the Eclipse, and since there are an estimated 94 million people who live within 200 miles from the state’s path of totality, officials are now expecting that between half a million and 2.2 million people will travel to the state to witness the historic event – and a large percentage of those people will be traveling down I-77 from big cities in the Midwest and Northeast.
Since most people will be traveling to their viewing destination this weekend, the heaviest traffic will be right after the eclipse from Monday afternoon through Monday night.
NCDOT has already started issuing warnings to drivers to anticipate unprecedented levels of traffic on Monday;
Not a road sign one sees very often. #SolarEclipse2017 #CLT pic.twitter.com/yb0cqOaX2o
— Steve Hewitt (@stevenhewitt) August 16, 2017
Some things you need to know before Monday's eclipse: #Eclipse2017 #NCeclipse pic.twitter.com/hyTANQKIhd
— NCDOT (@NCDOT) August 18, 2017
They’ve installed a total of 42 message boards at strategic locations across 7 counties with eclipse-related messages. Three new closed-circuit cameras have also been along I-77 which will be continually monitored for accidents and other traffic issues.
NCDOT also plans on suspending all road work and lane closures starting Friday evening and ending Tuesday afternoon. IMAP trucks will be stationed along I-77, I-26, and I-40 with employees ready to help stranded drivers with emergency tools, gas cans and towing chains at a moments notice.
If you normally travel on I-77, it would be wise to work from home on Monday and watch the eclipse from your back yard – just made sure you have your ISO 12312-2 Certified “Eclipse Glasses”.
To find out more about Monday’s eclipse, check out our comprehensive ‘Great American Eclipse’ guide here.
Please spread the word!