Cities and towns across the central United States are bracing for huge crowds and major logistical challenges as the “Great American Eclipse” on April 8, 2024 approaches. The total solar eclipse will be visible along a narrow path stretching from Texas to Maine, with a total blackout of the sun lasting over 4 minutes in some locations.
Millions of Visitors Expected Across the Region
Local officials estimate millions of visitors will flock to the region to witness the rare celestial event. Hotels in cities along the path have been fully booked for years, and many homeowners are renting out their properties to capitalize on the demand.
Some specific crowd projections for cities in the path include:
-
Killeen, TX expects its population to double to over 300,000 during the 4 day period around the eclipse due to its proximity to eclipse-viewing sites at Fort Hood.
-
Louisville, KY anticipates up to 500,000 visitors. Major venues like Churchill Downs are hosting eclipse watching events.
-
Nashville, TN has booked up virtually every one of its 28,000 hotel rooms and is arranging overflow camping sites and “Eclipseville” tent cities.
-
St. Louis is preparing for up to 1 million visitors who will flock to spots like the Arch and Botanical Gardens for eclipse events.
-
Cleveland, OH officials are planning for 700,000 people. Venues like the Rock Hall, Science Center, and Cleveland Metroparks are setting up eclipse activities.
-
Buffalo, NY expects 300,000 to 500,000 people around eclipse weekend, nearly doubling its population.
Total Eclipse Festivals and Events
Many towns along the path are organizing festivals, concerts, viewing parties, and other major events to entertain visitors leading up to and during eclipse weekend. For example:
-
Rochester, NY is hosting “ROC the Eclipse”, a 4 day festival downtown expected to draw over 100,000 people for music, food, science activities and more.
-
Nashville’s “Music City Eclipse” event will feature performances from major country stars like Keith Urban and Kacey Musgraves.
-
St. Louis’ “Moolight Eclipse” festival will have viewing parties at the planetarium, science center, zoo and art museum.
-
Smaller cities like Lenoir City and Athens, TN are organizing community events like star parties, alien festivals andpunkin chunkin competitions.
Traffic and Transportation Challenges
State transportation agencies are bracing for extreme traffic across the region before, during and after the eclipse. Critical solar eclipse statistics like duration of totality, eclipse magnitude, and more vary slightly by location, so visitors will fine tune their viewing spot at the last minute based on weather forecasts. Officials are coordinating creative solutions:
-
Kentucky is temporarily converting highways to one-way traffic outbound from Hopkinsville near eclipse centerline before the event and inbound after.
-
Tennessee has leased nearly 1,000 buses to run eclipse shuttles between cities.
-
Ohio counties are expanding train and bus services for the weekend.
-
Texas has waived commercial trucking restrictions and adjusted traffic signals optimize eclipse traffic flow.
Moonshadow Tourism Big Opportunity for Local Businesses
The massive influx of visitors is a major economic opportunity for businesses in the path. With hotels filled, overflow demand has led to a rush of residents renting homes, apartments and even RVs to visitors via services like AirBnB, VRBO and Outdoorsy.
Farmers are converting their properties into paid viewing and camping sites. Rural towns and state parks near the path are expanding camping capacity. With hotel rooms averaging $2,000 per night during eclipse weekend, enterprising homeowners and landowners stand to earn huge premiums by providing alternate lodging options.
Retailers, restaurants and attractions are also preparing for a major holiday-level surge in business. With hundreds of thousands of visitors descending on cities over the 4-day eclipse weekend, the additional population counts will be a boon for local economies. Officials estimate the total national economic impact of increased tourism and business activity due to the 2024 eclipse will top $1 billion.
Lessons Learned from the Great American Eclipse of 2017
For many cities, the expected crowds and challenges around the 2024 eclipse mirror what transpired around the U.S. total solar eclipse in August 2017. That event brought millions to view the coast-to-coast total eclipse, overwhelming many communities.
Officials have studied the successes and failures from 2017 to optimize planning for 2024. Case studies of traffic jams, bottlenecked tourist sites, cell network outages and other headaches around the last eclipse are shaping preparations around transit, telecom infrastructure, public safety staffing and more.
With the lessons learned from 2017, cities are cautiously optimistic they can handle the similarly massive crowds expected in 2024. Their economic benefit will be balanced against the realities of strained local infrastructure.
Eye Safety Concerns Prompt Public Outreach Campaigns
Alongside logistical preparations, public health agencies are planning major outreach campaigns around eye safety. Improper viewing equipment and techniques can lead to permanent eye damage and vision loss.
Local optometrists, hospitals and officials are:
- Distributing certified eclipse glasses & filters
- Educating on risks of DIY equipment
- Teaching safe indirect viewing methods
Messaging reminds that sunglasses don’t provide adequate protection and emphasizes using proper solar filters at all times when looking at a partial eclipse. Special outreach like multilingual brochures and signs will help communicate these safety tips to visitors.
While excitement is building, officials want to balance enthusiasm with smart viewing choices to prevent safety incidents. Similar outreach helped largely avoid major vision injuries around the 2017 eclipse.
Clear Skies Key to Successful Viewing
For optimal eclipse viewing, cloud-free skies are critical. Unfortunately, weather often becomes less predictable as Spring transitions to Summer.
Western cities in the path like Dallas and Austin have a higher chance of clear, sunny weather (around 75% in mid-April), while odds are lower heading east due to Gulf moisture. Specific projections include:
- Little Rock, AR: 64% chance of clear skies
- Memphis, TN: 63%
- Indianapolis, IN: 58%
- Cleveland, OH: 54%
- Buffalo, NY: 52%
So visitors may need flexible plans and backup viewing locations to hedge their bets against clouds. Current long-range models suggest the weather system on eclipse weekend should generally be tranquil, but localized popup showers & storms can never be ruled out. Officials are working with NOAA weather teams to monitor forecasts and deploy nowcasting resources as the eclipse gets close.
Future North American Total Solar Eclipses
After years of anticipation, cities are gearing up for huge crowds over eclipse weekend 2024. In just 12 years, another total solar eclipse will pass over North America on August 12, 2036. The path of that eclipse will cross from the Pacific Northwest through the Great Lakes.
So while the 2024 “Great American Eclipse” will cap years of planning and be a once in a lifetime event for many, officials are already preparing their weather eye towards the next total solar eclipse visible from the continent on August 12, 2036.
To err is human, but AI does it too. Whilst factual data is used in the production of these articles, the content is written entirely by AI. Double check any facts you intend to rely on with another source.
