Jonesboro, AR – Jonesboro Right Now – Jonesboro’s Parks and Recreation Department is making some changes to its new traffic flow patterns during Saturday youth sports games Joe Mack Campbell Park after visitor feedback.
The department announced plans to implement one-way traffic at park’s entrance and exit earlier this month on Saturdays, which went into effect Sept. 19. Drivers enter the park on Harry Drive and then exit onto Dan Avenue. Traffic resumes two-way patterns once inside the park.
In response to feedback regarding long wait times and congestion, Parks and Recreation director Jim Stearns told JRN the department is making new changes regarding entering and exiting the park.
“We got nearly 5,000 people into this park in two and half hours. Wasn’t perfect, still opportunities, but we learned a lot, and we’re gonna try to tweak that a little bit,” Stearns said.
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Team coaches and season pass holders will now enter the park from Dan Avenue, while all other spectators to enter from Harry Drive. Parks staff will be on site to verify coach and season pass holder status. This measure could divert about 500 spectators from the Harry Drive entrance, Stearns said.
He noted that season passes would be available for purchase through Friday at 9 p.m. at the Jonesboro Youth Center, located at 1421 W. Nettleton Ave. Additionally, the Harry Drive entrance will be expanded to two lanes as well.
All vehicles will still exit on to Dan Avenue, with the left and right lanes to be open.
“Obviously, we learned some lessons, especially at the gate,” he said. “That was a pinch point that was really delayed, and we realized that about mid-morning, we finally said, ‘Hey, let’s open the gate, let’s figure it out, let’s get everybody in.’ And that really started to relieve most of this traffic problem.”
Stearns said the department did not have enough staff on site on Sept. 19 to help with directions, as well as not enough staff to help with money collections. This also caused congestion, he said, as cashless payments take longer to process and parents of new players were unsure of where their child’s field was located.
More staff will be on site beginning this Saturday (Sept. 26) to assist with this. As newcomers learn the park’s layout and where their kids play, traffic congestion should also decrease, Stearns said. A map of Joe Mack Campbell Park can be viewed here or expanded below.
Expand for a map of Joe Mack Campbell Park
Stearns still recommended parents showing up 30-40 minutes before their child’s scheduled game. The one-way traffic patterns will be in effect until the end of the fall youth sports season, which is Saturday, Oct. 24.
The traffic change was first implemented to increase the safety of players getting to the fields, as well as to accommodate the growing number of players involved in youth sports. During previous seasons, Stearns said there were some close calls and even a few wrecks at the Dan Avenue entrance.
“The youth sports staff noticed that when parents got trapped in the turn lane, they were letting their kids out to cross Dan Avenue to come to the park,” Stearns said. “Nearly every Saturday, we had regular close calls at the entrance.”
Parks staff noticed Harry Drive rarely had much traffic on game days, he added, hence why the decision was made to direct entrance traffic to that road. The hope with this change, he said, is that players and drivers are safer.
The traffic pattern change will be likely reevaluated after Saturday, Oct. 3, Stearns said, as by then, baseball, soccer and flag football games will be played at the park.
“We’ll have to really look hard at it probably that Monday to see if this is even feasible,” Stearns said. “Probably for the fall season, we’re gonna stick with this pattern.”
Updates regarding traffic flow are being communicated through the department’s social media, as well as emailed to youth sports parents and coaches. More information would be emailed on Friday, Stearns added.
While Stearns said not much is likely to change this season, as schedules have been locked in, the department was looking into more solutions to relieve traffic congestion in the future, such as staggering game start times or starting games earlier in the morning, as well as possibly creating more entrances or parking on city-owned property.
“As parks and youth sports continues to grow, we got to think a little bit outside the box and try to see how to make it safer,” Stearns said.
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