Music festival backs up Interstate 24 traffic for miles

MANCHESTER, TENNESSEE - Georgians planning a trip up Interstate 75 to Chattanooga and then Interstate 24 on up to Nashville should be prepared for big-time traffic jams this weekend. <br> <br> A three-day outdoor music festival in Manchester tied up traffic on I-24 for miles. <br> <br> Promoters of the Bonnaroo music festival said 70 thousand tickets were sold for the event being held on a 500 acre farm near Manchester, about halfway between Nashville and Chattanooga. Up to 60 thousand vehicles were expected to try to get to the festival. <br> <br> Gates opened yesterday to accommodate the crowds but the traffic tie-up began during late afternoon and was still jamming the interstate for miles this morning. <br> <br> The traffic was worse on eastbound I-24, and the Department of Safety advised motorists traveling to get off in Murfreesboro, 30 miles away. <br> <br> Bonnaroo is featuring acts that get little radio play but have a huge following on the Internet and the concert circuit. Among scheduled performers are Widespread Panic, Ben Harper, Phish singer and guitarist Trey Anastasio and former Grateful Dead members Phil Lesh and Bob Weir. <br> <br> Promoters said most of the ticket-buyers were from Georgia, Illinois and Tennessee. <br> <br> The festival ends Sunday.

http://accesswdun.com/article/2002/6/193321