Coachella festival-goers head to the valley en masse

Today is expected to be one of the busiest traffic days of the year as the Coachella Music & Art Festival gets ready to open Friday, so authorities identified a series of routes likely to be problematic for festival-goers and locals alike.

Music fans are expected to begin their pilgrimage to Indio today, and despite the availability of the Any Line Shuttle that can carry visitors between the festival grounds and area hotels, major congestion is still anticipated on multiple routes.

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City officials said motorists should expect traffic delays starting today and continuing through Sunday on the following stretches:

southbound Jefferson, Washington and Monroe streets from the 10 Freeway to Avenue 52; Avenue 48 between Jefferson and Jackson streets; Highway 111 at Jefferson and Monroe streets; and eastbound 10 Freeway exits at Jefferson, Monroe and Washington streets. Several significant road closures are also planned Friday through Monday: Avenue 49 between Hjorth and Monroe streets; Avenue 50 between Madison and Jackson streets; Hjorth Street between Avenue 49 and Avenue 50; and Madison Street between Avenue 49 and Avenue 52 These are the Coachella and Stagecoach traffic alerts

City officials recommend that north- and south-bound motorists use Washington, Jackson and Calhoun streets as well as Golf Center Parkway; while east-west travelers were advised to use Highway 111, Fred Waring Drive, Miles Avenue, Dr. Carreon Boulevard and Avenue 54.

Once the festival ends this weekend and next, nearly 40,000 campers are expected to be leaving the festival site, causing significant traffic on the 10 Freeway, authorities warned.

Caltrans officials said the 10 and 60 freeways are both expected to be extra congested through the festival’s run.

“Motorists who plan to use Interstate 10 between Beaumont and Indio or State Route 60 from Moreno Valley to Beaumont during these events will experience traffic delays during peak travel times,” Caltrans spokeswoman Terri Kasinga said.

Traffic is expected to be heaviest on the Friday before the event for eastbound traffic, while Sunday will be the most congested for those heading westbound.

“Avoid delays by leaving early mornings on those peak travel days or wait to travel the day after the peak travel day,” Kasinga said.

A special traffic warning was also issued for those coming from Temecula using the 15 Freeway since state Routes 74 and 243 are closed for repairs, Kasinga said. Instead, she said motorists should exit the 15 Freeway at Interstate 215 northbound and then travel east on either the 10 or 60 freeways.

Indio officials strongly encouraged festival-goers to take advantage of the Any Line Shuttle, which costs $80 for the entire weekend and services hotels in Palm Springs, Palm Desert, Indian Wells and other local resorts.

Information on the Any Line Shuttle is available at this link.