Traveling for July 4th? WV Parkways Authority says to prepare for busy commutes

CHARLESTON, WV (WVNS) — The West Virginia Parkways Authority is reminding travelers to be aware of heightened traffic throughout the July 4th holiday.

Around 1.385 million vehicle transactions are projected to burn rubber on the West Virginia Turnpike during the period from June 27, 2024 to July 7, 2024.

The weekend before and after Fourth of July, historically, have been some of the busiest travel days of the entire year on the West Virginia Turnpike. This year the Fourth of July falls on a Thursday, which last happened in 2019. We have compared year-to-date, 2023, and 2019 travel numbers to provide a forecast for 2024, which we expect to process 1,385,000 transactions.

Jeff Miller, Executive Director | West Virginia Parkways Authority

11-day Travel Forecast – West Virginia Turnpike Transactions:

• June 27 – 120,000
• June 28 – 150,000
• June 29 – 150,000
• June 30 – 115,000
• July 1 – 105,000
• July 2 – 105,000
• July 3 – 135,000
• July 4 – 90,000
• July 5 – 115,000
• July 6 – 140,000
• July 7 – 160,000

The holiday week kicks off with the highest projected traffic patterns, with June 27, 28, and 29, projected as the busiest travel days of the period.

We fully expect that both weekends will be extremely busy, and with many out-of-state travelers passing through our area. We encourage everyone to plan their travel accordingly and remember that peak travel times every day will be between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Our toll booths will be staffed accordingly a well as having traffic flaggers in place. Our Courtesy Patrol vehicles and State Police Troop 7 will be out for motorist assistance.

Jeff Miller

E-Z Passes are accepted at every West Virginia Turnpike booths. To acquire an E-Z Pass or renew an existing one, click here .

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