MANCHESTER, Tenn. (AP/WMOT) — Bonnaroo 2012 begins Thursday. For the first time this year the show’s promoters will give attendees access to the festival grounds a day early.
It’s part of efforts to reduce traffic congestion as 80,000 concert goers converge on the Manchester area.
Event planners are taking other measures to ease traffic congestion as well. Festival traffic will be kept in the right lane or on the shoulder of the Interstate-24 this year, allowing through traffic to use the left lane unimpeded.
According to the Tennessee Highway Patrol, Bonnaroo traffic was responsible for 20 auto crashes last year, six of those involved injures. As a result, the THP is temporarily reducing the speed limit on I-24 in the festival area to 55 mph.
THP Captain David McGill also says his troopers will communicate more frequently this year with the show’s promoters.
“And that gives us the opportunity, you know, they can give us some feedback where the traffic is backing up; that we can go an assist them to alleviate the problem and move people to a different locations to enter the facility.”
Captain McGill says the Tennessee Highway Patrol has assigned more than 100 troopers and support personnel to help out at Bonnaroo this weekend.