INDIANAPOLIS - With 220 days to go until the Super Bowl in Indianapolis, local organizers are counting more than just the days until the big game. They're also counting parking spaces to accommodate the 150,000 visitors expected for the game.
Super Bowl volunteer Felicia Ferguson spends a typical day counting how many spaces are available to park somewhere near Lucas Oil Stadium. She reckons she's counted hundreds of thousands of parking spaces already.
Ferguson has logged plenty of miles counting spaces, and contacting business owners on the availability of their property on game day.
"We need to understand how they use their spaces, so how available is it. Are these spaces available, weekends, weekdays, in the evening, is it only permit parking and can we get to it? And decide rates, and really try to set the rates," she said.
On Super Bowl Sunday, the priciest parking spots will be located very close to the Stadium. In Dallas at last year's Super Bowl, the most expensive space was going for $1,100.
"I think there's a lot of entrepreneurial opportunities with an event like this, and I had an opportunity to walk around on the day of the game and look at those lots, and they didn't fill," said Mel Raines, VP, event operations.
Raines says the NFL will set a base price for their lots, and the rest of the market will follow from there. She expects the base rate could be lower than the $75 rate in Dallas.
There will be website services available like Click n Park which will allow fans to make their parking arrangements in advance. A campaign called "Know Before You Go" will be designed for Super Bowl spectators, visitors and curious locals to find out in advance where you can park.
Raines says if anything, it will be easier to head home. "A lot of the stadiums that have acres of lots, people are sitting in their cars for a long time."
Lucas Oil Stadium is in the top ten in the league for getting in your car and heading home after the game.
The Super Bowl Host Committee says it's making arrangements for parking out at the old Indianapolis International Airport. Around 50 to 100 shuttle busses will also be used to get visitors from remote parking lots to the downtown area.
On Super Bowl Sunday, the priciest parking spots will be located very close to the Stadium.
Super Bowl volunteer Felicia Ferguson spends a typical day counting how many spaces are available to park somewhere near Lucas Oil Stadium.
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