Heavy traffic fails to cast shadow over eclipse travel experience: 'It was 100% worth the trip'

After viewing the spectacle that was a total solar eclipse in southern Illinois, some travelers were met with a less-incredible sight — bumper-to-bumper traffic.

The Illinois Department of Transportation estimated crowds of 100,000 to 200,000 would descend on prime viewing areas downstate ahead of the event, and told those making the trek to expect congestion.

A few hours after the eclipse reached totality in southern Illinois on Monday, IDOT said traffic remained heavy “in pockets along the length of I-57 northbound, north of Marion to Champaign, I-64 westbound west of Mt. Vernon to the Metro East St. Louis area, and all of I-24.”

Tom Purdy, 42, headed from his home in Janesville, Wisconsin, to Mount Vernon in southern Illinois.

He said the worst traffic heading home was south of Effingham, but overall he expected the traffic to only tack on an additional half an hour to the usual five-hour drive.

“It was 100% worth the trip,” Purdy said.

He said he missed the total eclipse in 2017; he decided he would make the trip this year “one way or another,” ending up in a park in Mount Vernon with a few hundred other spectators.

He said he’ll be in his 60s when the next total eclipse graces North America in 2044, but he expects to make the trip again.

Jason Wright from Atlanta, Georgia, took a detour with his family to Marion on their road trip back home from a trip to St. Louis.

The trip from Marion to Atlanta was expected to take nine to 10 hours, but after a 50-mile stretch that took him three hours to get through, Wright expected the trip to take closer to 12 hours.

Despite the traffic, Wright said the experience was “spectacular.”

“I don’t have any regrets at this point, I’m glad we did it,” Wright said. “Now, ask me at 1 o’clock this morning when I’m still an hour from home, I may think differently.”

Chicago saw a partial solar eclipse, peaking at 2:07 p.m. with 94% coverage.

Chicago’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications encouraged spectators to take public transportation to viewing events around the city.

Janet Lucas West (left) and her daughter Janiyah Bailey look up at the eclipse at the Adler Planetarium Eclipse watch party at Adler Planetarium, Monday, April 8, 2024. | Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

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A jet skier looks up at the sun during the eclipse out on the lake near the Adler Planetarium Eclipse watch party at Adler Planetarium, Monday, April 8, 2024. | Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

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Preschool students Chloe Benard, 4, and 3-year-old Amor Diaz look up at a solar eclipse at Marquette Elementary School at 6550 S. Richmond St. in Chicago Lawn, Monday, April 8, 2024. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

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Third and fourth grade students watch a solar eclipse at Marquette Elementary School at 6550 S. Richmond St. in Chicago Lawn, Monday, April 8, 2024. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

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The 2024 partial solar eclipse seen from Marquette Elementary School at 6550 S. Richmond St. in Chicago Lawn, Monday, April 8, 2024. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

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Cesar Cortes shows how properly use the light filter at the Adler Planetarium Eclipse watch party at Adler Planetarium, Monday, April 8, 2024. | Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

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Neva West looks up at the eclipse at the Adler Planetarium Eclipse watch party at Adler Planetarium, Monday, April 8, 2024. | Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

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Rhean Gudani (right) and her siblings look up at the eclipse at the Adler Planetarium Eclipse watch party at Adler Planetarium, Monday, April 8, 2024. | Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

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Third and fourth grade students watch a solar eclipse at Marquette Elementary School at 6550 S. Richmond St. in Chicago Lawn, Monday, April 8, 2024. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

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The 2024 partial solar eclipse seen from the South Loop in Chicago, Monday, April 8, 2024. | Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times

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Faith Documento (right) looks up at the eclipse at the Adler Planetarium Monday.
| Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

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Spectators look up at the eclipse at the Adler Planetarium Eclipse watch party at Adler Planetarium, Monday, April 8, 2024. | Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

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People look up at the eclipse at the Adler Planetarium Eclipse watch party at Adler Planetarium, Monday, April 8, 2024. | Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

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Third and fourth grade students watch a solar eclipse at Marquette Elementary School at 6550 S. Richmond St. in Chicago Lawn, Monday, April 8, 2024. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

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The 2024 partial solar eclipse seen from Marquette Elementary School at 6550 S. Richmond St. in Chicago Lawn, Monday, April 8, 2024. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

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