The 81st Sturgis Motorcycle Rally vehicle count is over 370,000.
The Department of Transportation places rubber tubes across roads that count every car driving over them. The department uses that data to determine the size of the rally.
Mike Carlson is the Rapid City engineer for the South Dakota Department of Transportation. He says now the main concern for the rally is controlling traffic.
“So that’s our concern right now is those people that are leaving, those that are coming in, and those that are still riding their bikes,” he said. “Make sure that mix of traffic, everything still flows as well as it can, so we don’t have any serious accidents.”
This year’s traffic count is higher than last year’s. But it trails the 75th rally, when more than 500,000 vehicles were counted.
This story comes from a recent interview on SDPB's weekday radio program, "In the Moment." Listen to the full interview below.