Firefly organizers ready to welcome 90,000 fans

State agencies, emergency personnel and event planners say they are ready to welcome up to 90,000 music enthusiasts heading to Dover next weekend for the fourth Firefly Music Festival.

Throughout the four years of the festival – which has nearly tripled in size since its 2012 inaugural event – organizers have tweaked logistics for loading equipment, as well as managing parking and traffic and preparing emergency plans.

And with the elimination of single-day passes this year, Firefly director Greg Bostrom said he expects everything to go smoothly.

One month after the 2014 festival ended, Bostrom said, planning began for the 2015 event, which runs Thursday, June 18, through Sunday, June 21. New improvements, some of which were implemented last year, include extra loading days for vendors and equipment, an additional 12,000 feet of new roads on site, a new staff lot that can handle 1,500 cars per day and eliminate those vehicles from festival traffic, new lighting and shuttles, an offsite will-call location and improvements to the tolling process.

“I think 2015 is taking a successful 2014 plan and making incremental improvements and really drawing on what we did well,” Bostrom said at a press conference June 10.

He said the new tolling process should only take 30 seconds – down from last year's 45-second average – for each vehicle passing through Dover Downs International Speedway.

Most of the traffic heading toward Firefly comes from the north, said Gene Donaldson of the Delaware Department of Transportation Management Center. He encourages both residents and festival-goers to take advantage of both DelDOT's app and radio station at 1380 AM for real-time updates on traffic conditions, specifically along Route 1 and Route 13 during the four-day festival.

While no single-day passes were made available for the 2015 festival, not all attendees are camping, and day trippers will go through the main entrance at the Speedway, instead of the toll plaza, which organizers hope will alleviate any traffic back-ups.

Donaldson said at the peak of Firefly weekend, Friday, June 19, and Saturday, June 20, will see about 60,000 cars each day on the main roads. Beach traffic, however, should have no effect on the event's traffic patterns, he said.

For those not going to Firefly but traveling in the Dover area, he said, it's best to avoid the area around Dover International Speedway, if possible. Pedestrian traffic is the biggest safety concern, he said, and encouraged all motorists to be aware of people crossing roads and highways in that area.

Event organizers are drawing on Firefly traffic, parking and emergency plans for the inaugural Big Barrel country music festival, which will return to the same Dover venue the following weekend, from Friday, June 26, through Sunday, June 28.

Big Barrel's first appearance is slated to be larger than the first year of Firefly, with ticket sales on track to welcome 30,000 to 35,000 country music fans. Headliners include Blake Shelton, Miranda Lambert and Carrie Underwood, with more than 30 additional acts.

Bostrom said it's been an incredible experience seeing Firefly grow, and hopes to see the same with Big Barrel.

“It shows how much people are invested in the event,” he said. “We know Firefly is an experience. It's not just a place to come watch bands. And we think that experience is better for everyone when everyone is invested in the community and there for the whole weekend.”

A recent University of Delaware study found that in 2014, Firefly Music Festival contributed more than $68 million to the regional economy. Dover International Speedway President and CEO Michael Tatoian said the boost could increase to $90 million or $100 million this year with the addition of Big Barrel.

“That success doesn't happen overnight,” he said. “In addition to the economic impact of those dollars, it does create a wonderful worldwide visibility.”

This year, more than 100 artists will be featured at Firefly, including main headliners Paul McCartney, Kings of Leon and The Killers, as well as Morrissey, Snoop Dog, Foster the People, Hozier, Bastille and Modest Mouse.

Firefly passes are nearly sold-out, and only a small number of encore passes, priced at $329, and VIP passes, at $699, are still available.

For more information about Firefly Music Festival, go to www.fireflyfestival.com. For more about Big Barrel, go to bigbarrel.com.