Stuck In The Traffic And Can’t Get Out Of It

When it comes to an N.C. State / Wake Forest football game, officials in Raleigh, N.C., know how to handle traffic. U2, on the other hand, is a bit trickier.

When U2 visited Carter-Finley Stadium on the N.C. State campus Oct. 3, traffic was so backed up that some concertgoers never made the show, according to WRAL-TV. At one point, traffic was lined up for six miles along Interstate 40. Several people abandoned their cars and walked to the stadium.

One fan, who paid $250 for tickets for her husband’s birthday, wasn’t so lucky. She waited in traffic for three hours to find that all parking spots were depleted.

“One of the state troopers told us, ‘Too late. All lots are full. Go home and see you next year,’” the would-be concertgoer told WRAL-TV.

According to the Highway Patrol, there was no problem with the planning, just that the U2 fans showed up simultaneously.

“When an event for 60,000 people is scheduled at a certain time, about 60,000 people are going to show up to the venue at that time,” a person wrote on WRAL’s online forum. “Did they expect people to come in shifts?”

As for the stranded concertgoer, she said a manager told her there would be no refund because the concert went on as scheduled.

A spokeswoman for N.C. State was out of the office until Oct. 9 and could not be reached for comment.

Pollstar did contact one source who did not experience any traffic congestion and noted the stands appeared to be near capacity by the time the lights went down.