Turnpike officials urge safety ahead of busy travel weekend

(Harrisburg) — The Pennsylvania Turnpike is expecting heavy traffic over the holiday weekend.

More than 2.2 million drivers are expected to travel on the turnpike over Memorial Day weekend, slightly less than projections for last year’s travel period.

The busiest times are anticipated Friday afternoon and Monday evening. About 760,000 vehicles are expected to travel Friday and 485,000 on Monday.

The turnpike said it will suspend maintenance work and have all available lanes open in each direction beginning at 3 p.m. on May 23 through 11 p.m. on May 27.

Pennsylvania State Police plans to have an increased number of patrols on the toll road to watch for speeding, distracted driving, and seatbelt violations.

Ahead of the popular travel weekend, 2,000 turnpike employees across the state wore orange during a remote broadcast remembrance event to honor 45 of their colleagues killed on the job since 1945.