BANGOR – Organizers of the American Folk Festival have offered a few tips and suggestions to help people planning to attend this weekend’s events at the Bangor Waterfront get the most out of their experience.

As has been the case for the last several years, tens of thousands of people are expected to make the trip, whether they plan to drive, pedal or ride one of the shuttles that will run between Bass Park and the festival site.

For those who don’t already know, the festival is a showcase of the best in song, dance, food and crafts from many of the ethnic groups that make up the nation’s rich cultural fabric.

Modeled after the National Folk Festival, which enjoyed a three-year run here from 2002 through 2004, the American Folk Festival on the Bangor Waterfront was born in 2005. It is produced by the Bangor Folk Festival, in partnership with the city of Bangor, Eastern Maine Development Corp., the National Council for the Traditional Arts and the Maine Folklife Center at the University of Maine.

The event continues to break its own attendance records.

Last year’s American Folk Festival attracted an estimated 162,000 folks to the Bangor Waterfront.

Bangor has been blessed with good weather for the past several years. A chance of showers throughout the weekend, however, isn’t expected to put of a damper on the three-day party.

“Even that won’t keep people away,” Heather McCarthy, the festival’s executive director, said Tuesday.

Despite Maine’s reputation for changeable weather, there are no special rain plans.

Organizers earlier considered designating backup venues but quickly concluded that there were too few indoor spaces with sound systems to meet the need.

To that end, the show will go on, rain or shine. Should weather conditions reach the point that they pose safety risks for performers or audiences, some or all of the performance stages would temporarily close until the weather clears.

Traffic

While traffic will be allowed on Main Street during the festival, motorists won’t be permitted to turn right onto Railroad Street or otherwise drive into the festival grounds.

People headed for Brewer accustomed to reaching the Joshua Chamberlain Bridge by Railroad and Summer streets should instead take Cedar and Summer streets.

Festival volunteers – who will be clad in purple T-shirts this year – and Bangor police officers will be staffing several key intersections to help direct folks, McCarthy said.

Trains

As has been the case for the first two festivals, trains will be part of the mix. Residents and guests are asked to use caution around the active railroad tracks running through the entire length of the waterfront.

Due in large part to safety precautions established by Pan Am Railways, formerly known as Guilford Rail System, and by Maine Operation Lifesaver – an education and information organization dedicated to preventing accidents at rail crossings and along railroad rights of way – there have been no train-related accidents during the festival thus far.

During last year’s festival, however, a Brewer woman who had been walking illegally on a trestle spanning the Kenduskeag Stream, died after falling into the water.

Maine Operation Lifesaver’s statewide coordinator Fred Hirsch again urges festival attendees not to use the trestles, which like the tracks are private property, as pedestrian walkways.

Railroad and city police will be on the lookout for illegal activities such as people placing objects on tracks, throwing objects at trains or trying to hop aboard trains.

Craft and food vendors

Regular festival attendees will find no changes to the site layout this year. The tents, food and craft vendors, stages, shuttle bus and parking areas remain unchanged from a year ago.

This year, however, will bring a new food feature with a Maine twist.

At the request of attendees from previous festivals, the Taste of Maine tent will offer Maine-made soups and chowder, jellies and mustards, candies and an array of other delicacies.

The products that will be available will be packaged to take home to enjoy later, so as not to compete with the festival’s food vendors, McCarthy said.

Hungry festival attendees also can visit the many downtown restaurants and pubs handy to the festival site.

Parking and other details

As in previous years, dogs are not allowed at the festival, but people are encouraged to bring such necessities as water, sunscreen, hats with brims, lawn chairs or blankets to sit on, and festival programs and maps.

Parking fees will stay the same, with a $5 fee for one day of parking at Bass Park and $10 for a three-day pass. The shuttles, which are free, will run between Bass Park and the Heritage and Railroad stages.

Downtown Bangor has several public parking lots, plus the Pickering Square Parking Garage. Those familiar with downtown Bangor should consider parking in one of those locations.

Those unfamiliar with the city should follow these directions:

. From the north- or southbound lanes of Interstate 95, take Exit 182A to Interstate 395, then take Exit 3B to Bass Park parking.

. Easterly traffic taking Route 1A should access I-395 in Brewer and take Exit 3 to Bass Park parking.

General festival information, including schedules and maps, is available at the festival’s Web site at www.americanfolkfestival.com.

Cyclists welcome

If past years are any indication, traffic can get pretty congested during Folk Festival weekend. To help reduce the number of vehicles heading to and from the waterfront, the Bicycle Coalition of Maine for the last several years has provided bicycle valet and “park and pedal” programs, both of which are free.

For those coming a short distance, the coalition has a parking spot just for bikes between the Heritage Stage and the Kenduskeag Dance Pavilion. Attendants also can park at any of the following sites and bike into downtown Bangor.

All distances are one-way.

. University of Maine Steam Plant, College Avenue, Orono, 10 miles.

. Eddington School, Route 9, Eddington, 7 miles.

. Brewer Auditorium, Wilson Street, Brewer, 1 mile.

. Fruit Street School, Mount Hope Avenue, Bangor, 2 miles.

. R.H. Foster Energy LLC, Macaw Road and Route 2, Hampden, 3 miles.

. Pumpkin Patch RV Resort, Billings Road, Hermon, 8 miles, hilly.

. Dysart’s Truck Stop, Cold Brook Road, Hermon, 10 miles.

For information and maps, visit the coalition’s Web site at www.bikemaine.org.