Summer travelers experience traffic backups on Mackinac Bridge
Editor's Note: The online version of this story has been updated to correct information regarding traffic records on the Mackinac Bridge.
ST. IGNACE — The Mackinac Bridge Authority (MBA) tallies bridge traffic on a month-to-month basis, allowing the MBA to compare usage from one month to the next.
This model also provides a historical analysis of bridge usage during the same month in previous years.
The month that received the most traffic in recent years was July 2021, with 641,696 vehicles crossing that month.
In 2023, high traffic figures were posted in January, May, and June.
In 2021, high traffic figures were posted in April, July, September, and October.
In 2020, February bridge usage was quite high, with 216,732 vehicles making the crossing.
2019 saw high traffic figures in August, November, and December.
In 2018, March bridge usage was quite high, with 242,009 vehicles making the crossing."
Kim Nowack, bridge director of the MBA, reported in an Aug. 16 press release that 492,976 vehicles crossed the Mackinac Bridge during June 2023 compared to 448,055 in June 2022. Traffic was up 10 percent in June compared to last year. May’s traffic was up 4.8 percent, April was up 5.2 percent, and March was up 11 percent.
While traffic data for July and August of this year have yet to be released, expectations indicate those numbers will exceed July and August figures from 2022.
“This is just a regular summer day at the bridge now,” said a toll worker at midday on a Friday in August when southbound traffic was waiting an average of 30 minutes to cross the bridge.
Thirty minutes is not an unusual wait time on any given day in the summer, with some waits reaching an hour or more on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Travelers should expect the most traffic when heading northbound on Friday and southbound on Sunday.
Holiday weekends experience particularly high usage and longer backups. For example, in the days leading up to the Fourth of July, some motorists heading north experienced traffic backups that extended the full length of the bridge, which stretches five miles.
“Our toll workers always do the best they can to get drivers through the booths as quickly as possible,” said MBA Operations Manager Mike Buby. “We just ask that customers be patient, particularly at the busiest times.”
The Mackinac Bridge was constructed between May 1954 and October 1957. The bridge opened for business on Nov. 1, 1957. On Sept. 6, 2009, Richard Snyder of Clare drove the 150 millionth vehicle across the bridge.
Just 13 years later, on June 15, 2022, the Dalman family of Tawas City drove the 200 millionth vehicle across the bridge. Fifty million vehicles crossing the bridge in just 13 years — when it took 52 years for 150 million to cross — is another indicator of increasing bridge usage.
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Travelers looking to skip the congestion are advised to view the live camera feeds of the bridge, which provide the best estimate of traffic conditions. Live traffic cameras, updates on bridge conditions, toll rates and information on the MacPass program can all be found on MackinacBridge.org.
Though toll booths have been outfitted to accept many payment types — including cash, credit/debit cards, Apple Pay/Google Pay, and MacPass — cash and MacPass are still the fastest transaction types.
Ren Brabenec is a Brimley-based freelance writer and journalist with The Sault News. He reports on politics, local issues, environmental stories, and the economy. For questions, comments, or to suggest a story, email hello@renbrabenec.com.
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Summer travelers experience traffic backups on Mackinac Bridge
