More than 600,000 bikers are expected to be on South Dakota’s interstates and highways in the next two weeks. Even though the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally officially kicks off in a week, the traffic is already starting to pick up.
The South Dakota Highway Patrol is telling all drivers to be aware of the extra bikers the next few weeks.
"You have to be paying attention. If it gets busy obviously you need to reduce your speed a little bit but you need to be looking ahead," South Dakota Highway Patrol Lieutenant Alan Welsh said.
Welsh says nearly one-third of all motorcycle crashes in South Dakota happen around the time of the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.