A solar eclipse on Monday, April 8, will have dozens of Texas cities in its path of totality, and Texas is expecting increased traffic.
In Texas, the phase when the moon completely blocks the sun will last up to four minutes and 26 seconds. Various cities around Texas will be in the eclipse’s path of totality, including Eagle Pass, Del Rio, Killeen, Temple, Waco, Dallas, and Tyler—with 12.8 million Texans living in the path. Depending on where a person is located, the length will vary from a few seconds to more than a minute.
Additionally, due to the expected traffic delays, the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles has banned the transportation of oversized and overweight trucks for counties in the path of the solar eclipse. The ban will cover nearly all of North Texas and start at midnight on April 8 and end at midnight on April 9.
In Waco, 20,000 people will be able to attend an eclipse viewing event hosted by the city, Baylor University, the Lowell Observatory, and Discovery Channel. The event will cost $20 for a general admission ticket. The duration of the solar eclipse is said to be 4 minutes and 11 seconds in Waco.
The City of Austin is ranked as the number 2 destination for hotel room bookings for Monday, with hotel occupancy at 78 percent. The duration of the eclipse is expected to be 1 minute and 40 seconds in Austin.
San Antonio will be hosting nine different eclipse watch events hosted by the San Antonio Parks and Recreation Department, with the sole cost of $5 for the special glasses. While some parts of San Antonio will experience more than three minutes of the eclipse, other parts will experience a partial eclipse.
Recent estimates predict there will be around 270,000 to 1.1 million people coming to visit Texas to see the eclipse. However, the full impact of the amount of people visiting won’t be known until after the event.
