KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. – Brevard County is counting down to more traffic jams and large crowds with NASA moving the next Artemis I launch attempt to 2:17 Saturday afternoon.
Communications director Don Walker said managing Monday’s rush to the coast went better than expected, but Saturday will be even more of a challenge.
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“Since it’s a holiday weekend, it’s going to be a much bigger headache,” Walker said.
With the help of law enforcement, the county is asking drivers to plan ahead and consider keeping food and water in the car when heading out to popular viewing locations.
Brevard County’s tourism office predicted as many as 200,000 people for Monday’s attempt.
Saturday’s estimates are twice that amount.
“You could be seeing no less than 400,000 people or more,” Walker said.
Donna Hartley and her husband are retired Space Center employees who said they watch the big launches at home because of the crowds.
On Wednesday, the couple enjoyed a much quieter day at Jetty Park than what’s expected again on Saturday.
“I think it’s going to be an astronomical amount of people here,” Hartley said.