Trying to leave Cape Cod on Labor Day?
Traffic at the Bourne and Sagamore bridges at the end of any summer weekend can be heavy. Holiday weekends are worse. Labor Day weekend, marking the unofficial end of summer for many, is a prime example. (But hey, fall doesn't begin until Sept. 22!)
To avoid sitting in traffic as much as possible, the advice is to leave early or late. The Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce advises against trying to leave between 1 p.m. and 9 p.m. on holiday Mondays, and to try the roads before and after those times.
We'll be here, live, all day today with regular updates of what traffic at the bridges looks like.
4:30 p.m. update: A quick exit for drivers heading home now
Anyone still facing a drive home off Cape can make a quick exit in the later afternoon as Labor Day winds down. There are no traffic delays on the approximately 19-minute drive from Falmouth to the Bourne Bridge. Traffic on the approach to the Bourne Rotary from Sandwich Road is also moving at a near-steady flow, with a slight stack up at the Dunkin' Donuts curve.
The trip from Provincetown to the Sagamore Bridge on Route 6 West is also mostly without traffic hindrances, except for a light backup around Exit 82 (old Exit 10) in the Pleasant Lake area of Harwich. The total drive time is estimated at 1 hour and 12 minutes.
On the Cranberry Highway onto Route 6 in Sandwich, the road is clearer as well, with just a short knot of slow flow between the Stop & Shop gas station and Adams Street.
There are two slightly slower traffic areas along the Grand Army of the Republic Highway along the northside of the Cape Cod Canal, owing to traffic lights.
3 p.m. traffic update: Lull in traffic, drive time about 30 minutes shorter from Provincetown to Sagamore
There is a bit of a lull in the exodus from Cape Cod along Route 6 West at 3 p.m. on Labor Day, with a drive time of about 1 hour and 17 minutes from Provincetown to the Sagamore Bridge in Bourne — nearly 30 minutes faster than at 1:30 p.m. Traffic is backed up about 4.5 miles from the bridge, slowing down just before Exit 59 (old Exit 2) at Route 130/Forestdale Road and Water Street in Sandwich.
Backed up traffic along the Cranberry Highway onto Route 6 in Sandwich has eased considerably and is only slightly slower at the on-ramp.
The trip from Falmouth to the Bourne Bridge is taking drivers about 19 minutes, according to Google Maps. Traffic is only slightly stacked up just before the Bourne Rotary. Traffic on the approach to the Bourne Rotary from Sandwich Road has also eased and is confined to the section that passes around the Dunkin' Donuts location.
There are some slow traffic areas along the Grand Army of the Republic Highway along the northside of the Cape Cod Canal, owing to traffic lights.
1:30 p.m. traffic update: Crashes add travel time to Route 6 exit from Cape Cod
Cape Cod visitors continue to make their way home at 1:30 p.m. on Labor Day, with a drive time on Route 6 westbound of about 1 hour and 46 minutes from Provincetown to the Sagamore Bridge. Crashes on the highway have added to the travel time, with traffic backing up about 10 miles from just past Chase Road at Exit 63 (old Exit 4) to the bridge. One of the crashes is just before the on-ramp from the Cranberry Highway, and the other is nearly half a mile farther east.
Traffic is also backed up a little more than a quarter of a mile along the Cranberry Highway onto Route 6 in Sandwich.
The trip from Falmouth to the Bourne Bridge is taking drivers about 20 minutes, according to Google Maps. Traffic is backed up on Route 28 a little less than half a mile from the Bourne Bridge. The approach to the Bourne Rotary from Sandwich Road is also backed up just less than half a mile.
There are limited slow traffic areas along the Grand Army of the Republic Highway along the northside of the Cape Cod Canal, owing to traffic lights.
Noon traffic update: About 11 miles of slow traffic on Route 6 to Sagamore Bridge
Traffic at noon on Labor Day is backed up on Route 6 for approximately 11 miles as drivers approach the Sagamore Bridge in Bourne, just after Chase Road at Exit 63 (old Exit 4).
For drivers headed north toward the Bourne Bridge, the wait was a little more than 1,000 feet approaching the Bourne Rotary.
The trip from Falmouth to the Bourne Bridge is taking drivers about 27 minutes, while the trip from Provincetown to the Sagamore Bridge is taking about 1 hour and 40 minutes. Traffic is smooth going between Provincetown and Chase Road in Sandwich.
Sandwich Road (Route 6A) traffic traveling west toward the Bourne Bridge is also backed up about three quarters of a mile. Traffic on Cranberry Highway approaching the Sagamore Bridge is backed up about 1 1/4 mile.
10:15 a.m. traffic update: Slowing down in Dennis and Harwich area and approaching Sagamore Bridge
Good morning. The travel time west along Route 6 from Provincetown to the Sagamore Bridge in Bourne is slowing at 10:15 a.m. Monday, Sept. 2, 2024, with four areas of slower traffic reported on Google Maps. Route 6 in the Pleasant Lake area of Harwich, and just west of Chase Road in Sandwich to the Sagamore Bridge is the heaviest traffic.
The highway from Falmouth north to the Bourne Bridge is showing a slowdown approaching the Bourne Rotary.
9 a.m. traffic update: Slowdowns on Route 6 westbound
Good morning. The travel time west along Route 6 from Provincetown to the Sagamore Bridge in Bourne is slowing at 9 a.m. Monday, Sept. 2, 2024, with two areas of slower traffic reported on Google Maps. Exit 63, at Chase Road, the former Exit 4, is showing the heaviest slowdown.
The highway from Falmouth north to the Bourne Bridge is showing no slowdowns.
The National Weather Service is forecasting a partly sunny day today on Cape Cod, with highs in the mid-70s.
7:30 a.m. traffic update: Moving well with no slowdowns
Good morning. The National Weather Service is forecasting a partly sunny day today on Cape Cod, with highs in the mid-70s. North winds will be 10 to 15 mph with gusts up to 25 mph. Traffic is flowing smoothly west on Route 6 from Provincetown to the Sagamore Bridge. The 63-mile trip will take about 1 hour and 10 minutes, according to Google Maps.
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