The Wyoming Department of Transportation is taking several steps to prepare for what could be an influx of hundreds of thousands of visitors to the state during the August 21 total eclipse.
To start, WYDOT will stop construction on most projects in the path of totality from August 17 through the 23. No overweight or oversize permits will be issued between August 20 and 22 on Wyoming roads, and troopers will be working 12-hour shifts.
Doug McGee, the public affairs manager for WYDOT, said while they are preparing as best they can for the potential of hundreds of thousands of visitors, there are still a lot of unknowns.
“Will it be sunny all the way across the state or will it be cloudy in some areas so now all those numbers will try to move to the sunny areas? I think it’s just going to be one of those things where we have to wait and see what happens and what the numbers really are,” said McGee.
Certain projections show there could be as many as half a million people coming into the state.
“The potential for this event is unprecedented. There’s nothing in our history that I know of, even guys that have been here for decades, we’ve never seen anything like this from one corner of the state to another,” McGee said.
McGee also pointed out that Wyoming is in the height of fire season, and advised drivers not to park on the side of the road in tall grass, as it could spark a fire. It is also recommended that visitors pack extra water, snacks, and sunscreen in the car, and make sure they have plenty of fuel. An interactive map of the state can be found at travelwyoming.com/eclipse.