By HELEN FIELDING
Staff writer
Franklin may not have been in the path of totality for Monday’s solar eclipse, but it certainly was in the path of traffic afterwards.
A few hours after the eclipse ended, Franklin police confirmed they had been receiving calls and reports of traffic backed up downtown, particularly in the area of Coefields Corners, Meadville Pike and Grant Street.
Since there was nothing wrong with the lights or any other reason why traffic should be backed up, police concluded the traffic must be due to people traveling back from viewing the eclipse, a dispatcher at the police station said.
Plenty of other towns no doubt shared the fate of Franklin as officials were expecting an estimated 200,000 people to travel into Pennsylvania for the event, causing heavy traffic before and after the eclipse.
