Traffic on the westbound 10 Freeway from Indio was a predictable slow go on Monday, April 18, a day after the first weekend of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.

“Taking bets on how many hours I’m going to be sitting in this coacHELLa traffic back to LA,” one person tweeted at about noon.

At midday, the Caltrans Quickmap showed solid red for the westbound lanes until midway from Banning to Beaumont and then north on the 10 through Cherry Valley.

Caltrans spokeswoman Terri Kasinga recommended alternate routes for local travelers in Indio. Drivers traveling farther could use Highway 111 through Palm Desert and Palm Springs to reconnect with the 10. Motorists headed to Orange County or southern Riverside County could alternately travel on Highway 74.

Festivalgoers will have a second chance to leave at a more opportune time next Monday after the second weekend of the event on April 23-24.

“If they leave at 6 in the morning, they might not get stuck in traffic so bad,” Kasinga said.

Updates on road conditions are available on Twitter at @caltrans8, the Caltrans Quickmap and the Caltrans District 8 website.