The Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium to shut down roads; limited parking options available in Winston-Salem
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (WGHP) — The Cook Out Clash in Winston-Salem is just six days away. The historic event will be drawing thousands of NASCAR fans to the city.
NASCAR and Winston-Salem Police Department want race fans to have a plan for parking and route options before the event.
New lights system illuminates Bowman Gray Stadium ahead of the NASCAR Clash
'The venue is going to look different and they should not make assumptions on where they can pop a curve and park on MLK or Park in somebody's neighborhood yard off Argonne,' said Justin Swilling, NASCAR Clash project manager.
The NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium on Feb. 2 is sold out. There are 17,000 seats in Bowman Gray Stadium.
Those people will need a place to park, and on-site parking at Bowman Gray is also sold out for the race.
'We really want to make sure of it,' said Swilling. 'If you do have a ticket that you also have a parking plan. So, we've worked tirelessly with our city colleagues and all of the community partners to make sure that we have adequate parking either on-site or off-site from Bowman Gray Stadium.'
Street parking outside of the Bowman Gray facility will not be allowed. There are two off-site parking options at Innovation Quarter and Allegacy Stadium. Fans will be able to ride a shuttle to and from Bowman Gray Stadium.
'We want to make sure that they come to the track and have a great experience and that they're not having to worry about parking, that they've already got a plan in advance,' said Swilling.
With thousands of people coming to the city for The Clash, there will be some changes to the traffic pattern as well.
Winston-Salem police plan to keep Martin Luther King Junior Boulevard open. There will be several temporary road closures around the area.
'There's going to be on Argonne Boulevard at MLK. We'll have another one at Williamson Road, at MLK, and then we'll have a couple at Argonne and Calvert and then Diggs and Bruce and then another one at Williamson and Timlic,' said Winston-Salem Police Lt. Dan Battjes.
Police said these neighborhoods are no stranger to the traffic brought by the weekly race series in the summer. Additional steps are being taken for the clash to lessen the impact.
'Reaching out to the community and going door to door and making that face-to-face contact, contact, building that partnership with the community and letting them know, hey, we're here, we care about you. We care about you guys getting to where you need to go. This is the best place to get out of this neighborhood. This is the best route to get in and out of this neighborhood,' said Battjes.
Winston-Salem police plans to post the traffic pattern changes for the clash on its social media pages. Visit Winston-Salem has a schedule of events on its website for the NASCAR Cook Out Clash events. It lists the NASCAR hauler arrival on Research Parkway will be on Friday morning from 9 am – 11 am. There will also be a NASCAR Fan Zone in Bowman Gray's east parking lot on Saturday and Sunday afternoon.
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