MBTA adds trains buses to ease World Cup traffic around Gillette Stadium
FOXBOROUGH — Town officials say the traffic gridlock on highways and local roads experienced during last week's international soccer match at Gillette Stadium is expected to partially ease during the upcoming World Cup games because there will be additional MBTA trains and buses.
Many drivers, residents and town officials described the traffic surrounding Thursday's friendly match as a nightmare. The event was viewed as a practice run for the seven World Cup games at the stadium this summer.
More MBTA trains and dozens of buses are planned for the World Cup games, which run from June 13 to July 9.
The MBTA plans to transport about 20,000 of the expected 65,000-plus fans on 14 trains for each game — upgrading the Foxborough commuter rail station near the stadium. Only about 2,600 fans were transported to and from the stadium Thursday on four special event MBTA trains out of South Station in Boston.
France and Brazil — two of the more famous national soccer teams in the world — met in the exhibition game leading up to the World Cup, drawing a sell-out crowd of over 66,000 fans.
Though the game kicked off at 4 p.m., traffic was gridlocked well before kickoff and into the evening. The French team even got bogged down in traffic, and an estimated 7,000 fans were not in the stadium at kickoff. Two French fans said they walked from Boston to Foxborough along the train tracks to get to the game. The two posted a video of their adventure on Instagram .
MassDOT and others had advised the public to plan ahead and expect delays in the vicinity of Foxborough and Gillette Stadium, as it coincided with the evening commute.
Police Chief Michael Grace appeared before select board members Tuesday night to update them on last week's game.
"It collided with commuter traffic," Grace said. "There were too many cars and not enough roadway."
Route 1 and Interstate 95, which are congested during typical weekday commutes, were jammed with traffic, coming to a complete stop at times.
Other parts of town and area communities, such as Wrentham and Norfolk, were flooded with vehicles.
"The secondary roads really got filled up," Grace said.
Those include Mechanic Street, which the chief said was bumper-to-bumper, and routes 140 and 115.
"They all converge onto one street and one lane on Main Street," Grace said.
Such a situation likely will crop up with the World Cup games. "That's a fact," Grace said. "There's only so much you can do.
"We found a lot of drivers were not familiar with the area," Grace said. "Ride shares killed us. They find every road possible trying to drive down."
Town Manager Paige Duncan called what transpired "a perfect storm," saying the town has fielded a lot of reaction from residents.
Select Board Member Stephanie McGowan said she was caught in traffic coming from Boston, and made what she called a mistake by taking Route 1 before returning to the highways. "Ninety-five was backed up to 128," she said.
"There's nothing you could have done," McGowan told Grace.
One concern is six of the seven Cup games will take place on weekdays, with start times in the afternoon and early evening, again interfering with work commutes.
Select board Chairman Bill Yukna said school will still be in session for some World Cup game days. "Parents were a little upset" with bus delays Thursday, he said.
A main problem last week, the police chief said, was unlike Patriots fans, many soccer fans were unfamiliar with the parking layout near the stadium. Most parking is across Route 1 from the stadium, but many were staying on the stadium side.
Parking lots were opened at noon and gates at 2 p.m. for the 4 p.m. game.
"We opened these lots four hours before. They weren't lined up at that time as what we hoped for," Grace said, noting public outreach was expanded. "The only thing we can control is messaging."
There were over 85 state troopers handling traffic on Route 1, Grace said.
Seventeen traffic posts were set up by police officers to prevent traffic using side streets, he added.
The traffic jams didn't hinder public safety for residents, the police and fire chiefs said.
Some residents complained fans were using their backyards as bathrooms.
There were no arrests, Grace said.
"The crowd and fans were very well behaved," Grace said, adding there were no alcohol-related incidents or assaults.
The crowd was the second-largest to watch a soccer game at Gillette, behind only a 2007 friendly between Mexico and Brazil.
The town's police and fire departments have been developing a plan for over a year on how to handle the World Cup games, and Thursday's game was a rehearsal that involved state and federal authorities as well.
"The state and federal teams were tested to a very robust level, and it was very successful," Grace said, adding that drones were used and members of the FBI, Federal Aviation Administration, Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency and state hazardous materials team were present. Communication among the parties was seamless, he said. "We got a good run on that."
Representatives of the State Department were also at the game, preparing for VIP visitors from around the world expected for the games.
"They were very happy with the deployment of security at the event," Grace said of officials.
Local officials will be meeting with state and federal representatives to discuss how the game went as they prepare for the World Cup games, with parking, the MBTA and security as key topics.
Only 5,000 parking spaces will be available at the stadium during the World Cup games, compared to the usual 20,000. However, town officials note that additional parking will be available nearby due to fan transportation staging areas and a security perimeter, according to town officials.
There is parking for several thousand vehicles across Route 1 from the stadium and about 5,500 spaces in private, licensed satellite parking lots in the area.
And with more trains and buses, fewer fans will be driving, local officials said. Many fans also aren't expected to have cars, as they are traveling from abroad. Many of those who attended Thursday's game live in the region.
In another development, town officials were recently visited by representatives of a White House task force for the Cup games, Duncan said. Local officials were assured federal officials would expedite business and cover the costs of any unforeseen events, she said.
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