City report finds Knights of Lights caused widespread congestion, recommends shuttles, signage and leased restroom hubs

City Manager Burcham told the City Commission that this year’s Knights of Lights holiday lighting display produced unprecedented pedestrian crowds and traffic gridlock across downtown St. Augustine, and that the city’s existing parking, sanitation and public-safety staffing strained under the volume.

Burcham said the city’s helicopter flyover on Dec. 28 showed “roadways were at a standstill” and that the heavy pedestrian volumes turned intersections such as the Bridge of Lions, Cathedral Place at Saint George and San Marco at West Castillo into bottlenecks. “We saw crowds that heavy for Dec. 28 … They were throughout the historic district,” he said.

The city manager’s presentation summarized operational impacts: 19,450 people used the city shuttle during the season, the city’s downtown parking inventory is roughly 1,900 spaces (about 1,060 in the garage and 800 surface spaces), the garage closed to new entries on many December days, and the city’s garage revenues rose to about $1 million for the month of December. Burcham said the city received $200,000 in TDC (Tourist Development Council) grant funding this season: $100,000 for shuttles and $100,000 for lights and installation. He added the city ran a fiscal deficit on this event cycle of roughly $325,000 after counting grant and other…