Most days during Florida's season, traffic is backed up all the way to Pine Center to the west and to Burnt Store Rd. even down Veteran's Pkwy to the east, Monday through Friday from about 10am to 4pm. The average wait was 45 minutes to as much as over an hour for cars to get through Matlacha both in east or west directions. 

It is a waste of valuable hourly time and fuel for essentials to make it past Matlacha costs of which will get passed on to Pine Island residents. Planning ahead can mitigate some but many essentials like medical or governmental services, etc., are only open during normal hours. (Image is PIN stock photo)