Traveling to Myrtle Beach? Your guide to navigating traffic during Labor Day weekend
Heavy police presence and a series of traffic patterns will be in place in Myrtle Beach as officials anticipate thousands of tourists to vacation in the city for Labor Day.
As the summer comes to a close, Myrtle Beach leaders are being proactive to ensure traffic remains steady along Kings Highway and Ocean Boulevard as thousands of tourists are expected to inundate the city for the holiday weekend. Labor Day will also be the final weekend of the summer designated as an extraordinary event.
The extraordinary event designation, which has been in effect every weekend since mid-June, is defined as a large-scale gathering or event with a history of attracting a significant number of vehicles or people exceeding 10,000 that could have an immediate impact on the city’s public health, safety and welfare.
The designation, which is normally used for high-volume holidays like Memorial Day, was put in place along Ocean Boulevard following a series of shootings that erupted after the city re-opened for tourism on May 15 after a shutdown caused by the coronavirus. Of the eight shootings near Ocean Boulevard, police said three of those were gang-related.
With the designation allowing the city to request assistance from the federal, state and other local governments, there has been a noticeable decrease in gun violence on the Boulevard. Since June 19, the first extraordinary event weekend, the city received assistance from nine other local and state police agencies.
Police Chief Amy Prock explained during Tuesday’s City Council meeting that there will be heavy police presence along Ocean Boulevard over Labor Day weekend, with nearly 200 additional local, state and federal officers providing assistance. Pedestrian barricades will be placed along sidewalks between 29th Avenue North and 29th Avenue South to keep people off the street and ensure crosswalks are utilized.
Traffic will flow one way on Ocean Boulevard starting 6 a.m. Friday and ending 6 a.m. Monday. Traffic will be directed to travel southbound, with the northbound lane reserved for emergency traffic, Prock said. Traffic boards will also be placed along Kings Highway information motorists of weekend safety plans.
Access on and off Ocean Boulevard will be limited to those with Kings Highway traffic signals, including 21st and 29th Avenues North, and 3rd, 13th, 17th, 19th and 25th Avenues South. Access for emergency vehicles only will be limited to 16th and 8th Avenues North and 6th Avenue South.
Prock added traffic control devices will also be staged at various intersections throughout the city in the event of collision or incident. If a roadway becomes too heavily congested and traffic demands exceed the roadway capacity, officials said a team of officers will divert traffic to a less congested area.
Furthermore, traffic cones will be placed at streets leading into residential areas to avoid motorists disrupting neighborhoods.
Golf carts will be prohibited on Ocean Boulevard on avenues south of 29th Avenue North from Friday until traffic devices are moved on Monday. Exceptions will be made for golf carts used by police. Mopeds will also be prohibited south of 29th Avenue North from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. starting Thursday until restrictions lift on Monday.
Those who violate the city’s rules will face a fine up to $500, imprisonment of 30 days or both.
Visitors are further advised to follow all social distancing and hygiene recommendations, along with the city’s mask order to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. Prock stressed residents and tourists should follow the city’s government and police Facebook pages for updated information but to call 843-918-4636 for any questions or concerns.
This story was originally published August 30, 2020 at 4:13 PM.
