Delaware Memorial Bridge Sees Record Traffic In Wake Of COVID

Saying they are surprised at how quickly traffic volumes have increased after the coronavirus pandemic, the Delaware River and Bay Authority (DRBA) reported record traffic volume at the Delaware Memorial Bridge for the month of June.

To wit, 1,627,547 crossed the bridge in June, eclipsing the previous all-time record of 1,619,637 vehicles set in June 2019, according to the DRBA.

“Commercial traffic has been rather robust for the first six months of the year, but Class 1 passenger vehicles hadn’t rallied until this past month,” DRBA Executive Director Thomas J. Cook said. “Daily commuter traffic is still off 30 to 35 percent compared to 2019 numbers. These trends appear to reinforce what some experts have suggested as we recover from the pandemic – telecommuting for work continues to be prevalent and there’s a pent-up demand for vacations and travel.”

The DRBA had projected a 10 percent decrease for 2021 compared to 2019, which was a record year for traffic on the Delaware Memorial Bridge.

Then, the coronavirus pandemic hit, and traffic suffered dramatically. In March 2020, traffic volume plummeted more than 350,000 vehicles, according to the DRBA. Most of that decline came in the second half of the month, after the state was shut down to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Bridge transactions fell to 559,435 in April 2020, a decline of nearly 66 percent, according to the DRBA. Numbers declined by 50 percent in May 2020, totaling 875,000 transactions for the month. Traffic numbers stabilized during the summer, but remained down by more than 20 percent compared to the previous year.

For 2020, the Delaware Memorial Bridge handled 14,124,440 vehicles through the southbound toll plaza, a drop of nearly 23 percent compared to the 2019 figure of 18,288,314. Revenue at the Delaware Memorial Bridge was off more than $16 million.

During the first six months of 2021, Delaware Memorial Bridge traffic has been slowly recovering, the authority said.

Meanwhile, multiple construction projects continue at the bridge. Steelwork Repair, Suspender Rope Replacement Program, and Bridge Painting projects will lead to lane closures over the next several months, the DRBA said.

DRBA engineers have designed these capital projects to minimize traffic delays as much as possible, but some are expected, particularly during peak travel times.

Drivers are urged to be careful and stay alert in and around construction zones, obey posted speed limits, and plan to take a few extra minutes during rush hour periods.