Mackinac Bridge to close for annual Labor Day Bridge Walk
ST. IGNACE, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - Here's everything you need to know about the annual Mackinac Bridge Walk that happens on Labor Day.
The bridge will be closed on Monday, Sept. 5, from 6:30 a.m. to noon for the walk.
Officials say emergency vehicles will be able to cross the bridge but will be closed to public vehicles until the walk is finished and all participants are off the bridge, to ensure safety.
"If you're traveling in the Straits area Monday, we urge you to make your plans around this scheduled closure," Mackinac Bridge Authority (MBA) Bridge Director Kim Nowack said. "Traffic backups are frustrating for everyone, so we ask that you either cross the bridge prior to 6:30 a.m. or time your trip to arrive at the bridge after noon."
The walk will start in St. Ignace and Mackinaw City, to eliminate the need for bussing, and to create more options for participants.
Here is a list of options participants have when it comes to how they complete the walk:
- Starting from either end of the bridge and walking toward the center, turning around at the midpoint and returning to the city they started from, where their transportation is located. The turnaround points will move toward the ends of the bridge beginning at 10 a.m., but walkers can walk at least a portion of the bridge if they start by 11:30 a.m. Walkers must be on the side of the bridge they wish to return to before 10 a.m.
- Walking the entire length of the bridge starting from either end. Those who choose this option must reach the midpoint before 10 a.m. or they will be turned back. Anyone who walks the entire bridge must arrange their own transportation back to the side they started once the bridge reopens to public traffic at noon.
- Crossing the bridge, starting from either end, and then turning around and walking back to the side they started from. In this option, walkers will need to cross the midpoint on their return trip by 10 a.m. or they will be turned back and need to find their own transportation back across the bridge after it reopens at noon.
"We don't want anyone to be disappointed with their walk experience, so we want to make sure everyone knows they need to be on the side of the bridge they wish to return to before 10 a.m. so they aren't turned back," Nowack said. "We need to start moving the turnaround point at that time to ensure we can clear the bridge and reopen by noon."
This annual event has been held every year since 1958, except in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The event has attracted anywhere from 20,000 to 30,000 people in the past, and 21,000 people participated in 2021.
For more information on the event, visit here.