Maryland's Eastern Shore is no stranger to Labor Day weekend beach traffic. Locals say changes are helping.
Many people spent Labor Day weekend by the beach on Maryland's Eastern Shore, which meant heavy traffic for drivers and communities along the way.
The Maryland Transportation Authority (MTA) says approximately 350,000 vehicles typically cross the Chesapeake Bay Bridge from Friday to Monday during the holiday weekend.
On Kent Island, officials and residents worked together to ensure a safe and smooth sendoff to summer.
Beach traffic peaks for Labor Day weekend
Dealing with beach traffic is just part of life for those who live by the Bay Bridge, but locals say it has gotten easier to deal with since the county started blocking off certain exits.
"Traffic today was probably the worst out of all the days," said a resident named Seth, of Federalsburg. "I'd say Labor Day is probably the most traveled weekend, especially because everybody is taking their vacations off from all around the area, and they all want to come and see the ocean."
Even those afraid of heights find a way to make it across the 4.3-mile span to reach the beach. Steven Eskew's Bay Bridge Driveovers Service helps make it happen.
"We meet you here at the gas station or over at the weigh station, we get into your car, drive you across and drop you off in a safe spot on the other side," Eskew explained.
Ramp management program making a difference
With hundreds of thousands of vehicles crossing the bridge, Queen Anne's County started blocking off local exits a couple of years ago to prevent drivers from cutting through residential areas.
"A lot of people can't drive and they don't know how to get around around here, and then the GPS will take them around, and they'll mess up all local traffic too. So they kind of try to block all this stuff off so local traffic isn't as much affected," said the resident named Seth.
Locals like Eskew say it has made a huge difference.
"Since they've done the traffic control, it has helped the residents. A lot of the residents were very upset about it at first, but they realized it's working, because emergency services need to get through," he said.
The county's ramp management program currently operates each Saturday, Sunday and Labor Day Monday in the summer, but Eskew says he'd like to see it extended to Fridays.
"It does allow you to get around," he added.
Beach traffic usually slows down but does not fully drop off after Labor Day. Eskew said he's seeing more and more people go down to the beach in October.
