TRANSPORTATION & EXODUS
NEVADA HIGHWAY PATROL TRAVEL TIPS
The Nevada Highway Patrol would like to provide some travel tips to participants traveling to the event. Troopers encounter stranded motorists with a wide variety of mechanical problems that can be avoided with a little extra preparation before leaving.
Load Your Vehicle Safely!!
Loading your vehicle properly, whether it is a car, truck, trailer, motor home, or anything being towed, will make your trip to and from Burning Man safer and less stressful. By applying some simple precautions, your load can be made safe.
Never exceed the load capacity or the towing capacity of the vehicle or trailer. Check the recommended (not the maximum) weights for your vehicles and do not exceed them.
Load your vehicle safely. Heavy items should be located low, centered, and over or between the axles.
Secure your load with straps or rope.
Make sure that the brakes and lights work on the trailer you're towing. (This also applies to all of your vehicles.)
Always use safety chains, installed between the trailer and the tow vehicle.
Do not overload the roof or roof rack on your vehicle. Large or bulky objects, even though they are lightweight, can make driving dangerous in cross winds. They may loosen and fall off. An extraordinary amount of full trash bags were found along the roadside after Burning Man 2005. The only reasonable explanation was poorly secured loads. When towing a trailer, do not exceed the torque weight recommendations for the trailer and the hitch.
Before leaving for the Black Rock Desert, you should follow these tips to ensure your vehicle is ready for the trip:
- Have your local mechanic inspect your:
- Radiator
Tires, including your spare
Belts
Brakes
Hoses
Lights
There are several things to keep in mind when preparing your vehicle. You are traveling to the Nevada desert in August. Temperatures can reach well above 100° F during the day. Keep in mind that your vehicle is going to be loaded with the extra weight from the gear that you will be taking to the event . Check your vehicle's tires and air pressure again after loading your vehicle. These extra precautions can help avoid a breakdown.
Exodus is an exercise in patience and cooperation.
As you drive to Burning Man along that small two-lane country highway, observe its narrow, finite capacity. Now imagine 10,000 vehicles trying to leave Black Rock City in one day. Like draining a bathtub with a straw, it will take time. Cooperate with the Exodus staff directing traffic. Keep the spirit alive!
Special note on EXODUS...
Every year we have major issues with all the highways leading away from Black Rock City being strewn with trash and debris. LEAVE NO TRACE DOES NOT STOP ON THE EDGE OF THE PLAYA!!! It's always hard to tell what trash has flown off of the top of haphazardly packed vehicles and what is just dumped; we do know that the trash causes some major problems and concerns.
Debris on the highway is a hazard that can cause accidents. Don't let your trash cause someone to get hurt or killed. Most of the highways around the event are pristine wilderness: when they are covered with trash it looks ugly and pisses off a lot of people, including the local townsfolk, the BLM, and local Indian Tribes who don't want to see or deal with other people's garbage. Nobody wants to come along and clean up after you, so please don't create the mess for them.
See the tips in this guide about LEAVING NO TRACE . Think about your garbage before you leave home; pack so that you create less trash to bring home with you. And finally, when you leave Black Rock City, pack your garbage and belongings so that they will NOT fly off when you are going 70MPH down the highway (put loose items in your car and not on top), and then dump your garbage only in APPROVED FACILITIES. Thanks for doing your part!
Suggestions:
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Get gas and other supplies on the way towards the event before arriving at Black Rock City. Our biggest problem is everyone trying to stop in Gerlach and Empire on the way out which causes huge jams and backups.
Tune in to Burning Man Information Radio at 94.5 FM for detailed traffic reports.
Traffic is heaviest on Sunday and Monday afternoon. Be wary of leaving at these times.
If you must stop outbound in Gerlach or Empire be careful to pull off the road so as not to create back-ups through the towns and all the way to Black Rock City.
If you break down or have car problems, make sure you get off the road and out of the way so the traffic can keep moving. Keep safe, and get out of the way as soon as possible.
Make sure your load is secure. We don't want accidents to happen, or to have trash strewn along the highway.
Don't pass on the local roadway. Serious accidents are caused every year by this.
OBEY SPEED LAWS. Particularly through small towns.
Don't cut in line or attempt to find another exit. All routes will be monitored by law enforcement agencies during exodus. Any vehicle caught cutting in line may be fined, as well as escorted to the back of the line.
Stay alert, stay alive.
We're recruiting dozens of volunteers to help direct traffic on Sunday and Monday, and bid a friendly goodbye to everyone. Come to Playa Info in Center Camp during the event for information on how to help. Off the playa, you can reach us at exodus (at) burningman (dot) com.
WHERE DO I TAKE MY TRASH, RECYCLING & GREY WATER?
Garbage Disposal After the Event
Do NOT discard refuse along the highway or in neighboring towns. Pack your load securely. For more information see Travel Tips.
In the event you have to portage garbage on top of your vehicle, make sure it is double bagged and strapped down securely. Several public landfills are located conveniently nearby.
Do NOT dump trash at the westbound I-80 "Wadsworth" rest area. In 2005 the dumpsters were overflowing into the parking lot. The Burning Man event organizers may be forced to surrender a significant bond for clean up of this area if participants do not cease dumping in this area, which will affect your ticket prices. This year the Nevada Highway Patrol may be issuing littering tickets to anyone placing trash on the ground. There is a $1000 fine for littering.
2008 Reno-Sparks Free Drive-Thru Recycling Project
Friday, August 22 through Wednesday, September 3 (Keystone locations operating through Sept. 6) Open 24 hours!
Accepted Recyclables: Plastics (HDPE 1,2,3,4 & 5), plastic bags, glass, all metals (aluminum, tin, steel, iron, etc.) paper, cardboard, recyclable batteries and bikes.
All you have to do id drive into the parking lot and deposit your recyclables in the assorted bins provided. Please have your recyclables as clean as possible!
Garbage disposal will additionally be available for recyclers at approximately $3 per standard 35-gallon trash bag.
Proceeds raised from recyclables and proceeds raised beyond the costs for garbage disposal will be donated to support local environmental programs and charitable causes. Save Mart will match in donation the proceeds raised from recyclables up to $1,000. Your participation and care is very much appreciated in this year of a multi-community initiative to promote recycling!
DRIVE THRU LOCATIONS AT SAVE MART SUPERMARKETS:
RENO:-
525 Keystone Avenue, 775-786-2150 (back of store)
195 West Plumb Lane, 786-0138 (back of store)
10500 North McCarran Blvd., 746-8882
- 565 East Prater Way, 359-9060
9750 Pyramid Way, 425-2700
OTHER PLACES TO TAKE YOUR RECYCLING:
Seek out recycling and salvage centers along your route home. Do your best to make Burning Man a no waste even this year! Go to: http://www.earth911.org/master.asp and enter zip code to find nearest location.RSW Recycling
NOTE: closed on Labor Day!
www.wm.com/Templates/FAC5721/contacts.asp
1100 East Commercial Row
(Grand Sierra Resort - Reno Hilton)
Reno, NV
( 775 ) 329-8822
RSW Recycling
NOTE: closed on Labor Day!
1451 East Greg Street
Sparks, NV
( 775 ) 329-8822
OTHER PLACES TO TAKE YOUR TRASH:
In Fernley, NVFERNLEY SANITATION (775)-575-4964 will be OPEN through the Labor Day weekend, 7:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. every day. The office (but not the dump) is closed on weekends. The rate is $16.00 for up to 3 cubic yards (27 cubic feet). To reach Fernley Sanitation from Burning Man head south through Nixon and Wadsworth. When the road ends at 427 go left. (either direction takes you to I-80) You'll go under I-80 and past the Pilot Gas Station on your right. Stay on Main Street to the light. At the light, make a right onto Alternate US Highway 95a. Go about 2 miles and on the left you will see the Public Wreckage Disposal building. Stop at the scale house on your way in.
In Lockwood, NVLOCKWOOD LANDFILL (775)-342-0401 will be open only on Saturday & Sunday of Labor Day Weekend. They will not be open on Monday of Labor Day Weekend. They operate 7:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. seven days a week except holidays. The charge is $4.00 per cubic yard with a $2.00 environmental fee per cash customer. Head West on I 80; get off at the Mustang exit (number 23). Go straight and continue past the cattle guard for approximately 2 miles. The entrance is on the left-hand side.
In Reno, NVRENO DISPOSAL SERVICES (775)-329-8822 will be OPEN through the entire Labor Day weekend. Hours are 6 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday - Saturday and 8 a.m.-6 p.m. holidays and Sunday. The location in Reno is 1390 Commercial Row. Charge is $6.00 per cubic yard, with a $20 minimum. From I-80 westbound, take exit 14 and go south on Wells Avenue. Make a left turn onto 6th Street and then a right onto Sutro Street. Make a left onto Commercial Row and look for 1390 on your left.
WHERE TO TAKE YOUR GREY WATER
Please check with the dumping station before the event for disposal charges and to determine if they can handle the amount of water you are planning to dump! Larger camps should consider setting up a contract with United Site Services to collect grey water. With 30 days notice, they will provide a collection tank for you at the event that they will collect at the end of the event for disposal.
Reno/Boomtown KOA
www.koa.com
I-80 Exit 4 "Boomtown"
2100 West Garson Rd.
Verdi, NV
( 775 ) 345-2444
Baldinis Sports Casino
http://baldinissports.com
865 S. Rock Blvd. (corner of Glendale)
Reno, NV
( 775 ) 358-0116
TA Travel Center
I-80 Exit 19
East McCarren Blvd.
Sparks, NV
www.tatravelcenters.com
Loomis RV Park
3945 Taylor Road
(North on Sierra College Blvd.
to Taylor Road)
Loomis, CA
Sacramento 49er Travel Plaza
www.sacramento49er.com
I-80 Exit 85 (West El Camino Ave. Exit)
2828 El Centro Road
Sacramento, CA
( 916 ) 927-4774
Any further questions can be directed to:exodus (at) burningman (dot) com.
