Thousands view Big Boy train in Homestead, adding to local Parkway East detour traffic
The arrival of Big Boy in Homestead added to the traffic already coming through the borough as part of the local detour for the Parkway East Commercial Street Bridge closure.
Thousands of people watched along the rail lines in the borough, with some waiting hours after securing a prime spot.
"It's a lot worse than Christmastime," said Munhall emergency management coordinator Daryyl Hunt of the traffic in the area, which was between the Waterfront and downtown Homestead. "It's six times worse than a normal Saturday."
People taking the local detour faced backups on Eighth Avenue and on the Homestead High Level Bridge.
"It was just backed up for like miles. It looked like any direction to try to get in and out. It was crazy," said Kathryn Nagy, of Shadyside.
She drove to Homestead from the Parkway East off the Squirrel Hill exit and said she didn't hit traffic until she neared Homestead.
One woman KDKA-TV spoke with said the traffic was so bad that they had to get off the bus and wait for a friend to pick them up.
Traffic had been bad since at least midday, multiple people told KDKA-TV. Officials estimated 7,000 people came to Homestead to watch the Big Boy train, Hunt said.
"You don't see shiny trains, big trains anymore, so it was just exciting," said Tracie Wright, who owns a business in Homestead.
"I think it's beautiful," Nagy said. "I think we need more trains in this country. I would love to be able to take a train more, anywhere. And so, if it takes people coming to see a train for us to get better trains, and it doesn't take eight hours to get from Pittsburgh to Philly on a train, I'll take it."
Hunt said it took one of his crews 15 minutes to drive the length of two football fields.
"People just don't know where to go, and it was a mess as far as I was concerned," Hunt said.
He expects the issues will stick around until the closure ends, potentially leading to more accidents.
"They're not taking the detour routes. We found that out the last time the Parkway was closed. They told us PennDOT has cameras to help ease the flow of traffic, but I haven't seen it yet," Hunt said.
With it being the first day of the Parkway closure and the day of the Big Boy visit, they took extra safety precautions.
"When you only have, you know, 14-15 of these major steam engines in the world, and one is going to roll through your town, it's worth coming out on a Saturday and beating the heat," said An Lewis, the executive director of the Steel Rivers Council of Governments, which helped to organize the train viewing.
The same goes for beating the traffic.
"I love something that I can just like go to and say I've done," Nagy said. "I went to Groundhog Day last year up in Punxsutawney, just for why not, and so I'm here for the exact same reason. Why not? There's a big train coming through."
It was a train that was worth the wait in more ways than one.
