Middlelands Festival, a medieval-themed electronic music festival, begins Thursday evening at the Texas Renaissance Festival grounds in Todd Mission, just north of Magnolia city limits. While several thousand guests are expected to attend the three-day music and camping festival, Magnolia Police Department Lt. Kyle Montgomery said thru-traffic in Magnolia will likely be less than that during the TRF each fall.

"I think this is going to be very minor compared to Ren Fest," Montgomery said. "That's what we're hoping."

As this weekend's festival is the first of its kind in Todd Mission, the only traffic comparison is the TRF, which brings in up to 40,000 guests each day, Montgomery said. In comparison, Middlelands may bring in 30,000 guests across the weekend.

"It's a much smaller scale," he said.

Additionally, there is no re-entry to the festival for guests, many of whom have purchased a three-day pass, Montgomery said.

"If you show up, once you leave [the festival grounds], you can't come back in," he said. "They're not leaving until it's over with, so that's good—[traffic is] only coming in and leaving."

Although Montgomery said he does not expect a large increase in traffic, additional officers will be placed at the intersection of FMs 1488 and 1774 to improve traffic flow. Montgomery said officers will also man the back roads heading toward Todd Mission, with one officer dedicated to clearing stalled vehicles or other causes of traffic congestion in Magnolia.

"What we're planning is [this weekend is] not going to be near[ly] as bad as Ren Fest," Montgomery said.

For Magnolia residents, Montgomery said he cautions drivers against taking shortcuts or following a GPS, as signs will be posted detailing the best route to take.

"We've been doing this for years now," he said. "We know which routes [are] going to be the best way to go."