4/9/2024: MaineDOT's Preliminary Assessment of Eclipse Traffic Conditions

News Release for April 9, 2024

For more Information:
Paul Merrill, Public Information Officer - 207-624-3355 or 207-215-9297

AUGUSTA - The Maine Department of Transportation measured traffic volumes on some state highways yesterday that were between 10 and 20 times greater than normal. Traffic engineers monitored travel throughout the weekend and estimate that 15,000 additional vehicles came into Maine to witness the solar eclipse. Many more people traveled within the state to access the eclipse's path of totality. Additional details on traffic counts from the entire eclipse weekend will not be available until after this week.

"The Maine Department of Transportation's goal was to get our customers safely where they needed to be for the eclipse, and that happened," said MaineDOT Traffic Engineer Colby Fortier-Brown. "Even though there were traffic delays on state highways as people headed home from the path of totality, we are pleased to report that our state did not experience any major traffic safety incidents related to the eclipse. Our team was able to predict where travel was going to be heavy and help keep vehicles moving safely - albeit more slowly than usual in some areas."

Prior to the eclipse, the biggest traffic back-up observed by state traffic engineers was on Route 201 between Skowhegan and Jackman, where there were delays of approximately one hour. After the eclipse, several state highways in the western and central parts of the state experienced multi-hour delays as eclipse-viewers traveled back south. Traffic engineers observed the most congestion on I-95 north of Bangor as well as Routes 6, 27, and 201. The biggest traffic back-up after the eclipse was a four-hour delay measured on Route 201 between Jackman and Skowhegan. Most traffic congestion in Maine had cleared up by 7:00 p.m.

MaineDOT worked in close coordination with many federal, state, and local agencies as we planned for and experienced the eclipse weekend. We would like to thank all those partners for their hard work and dedication to ensuring safe travel in Maine.

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