OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) - Officials at Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo say they are reviewing their parking options and plan after a record-breaking crowd this weekend triggered a large traffic jam on surrounding streets Sunday.
More than 60,000 people visited the zoo over the Memorial Day weekend, according to Dan Cassidy, the zoo's General Curator. In Cassidy's more than four decades working at the zoo he says he has never seen a stampede like what happened on Sunday.
Traffic backed up from parking lots onto 13th Street and Interstate 80. At one point the line of cars trying to park at the zoo stretched on I-80 to 42nd St., nearly two miles. Many families parked in the neighborhood west of the zoo, reminiscent of when the College World Series was played at Rosenblatt Stadium.
City of Omaha engineers told KMTV they don't believe anything is wrong with the street design or layout and agreed with zoo administrators who believe the combination of the holiday weekend, nice weather, and new African Grasslands exhibit enticed the enormous crowd.
Cassidy said the zoo is now looking at ways get people from the zoo quickly and efficiently. “One of those options is a shuttle service,” he added. Buses would take people to the front gate from a satellite parking lot and back again. He said the parking lot at Southroads Mall in Bellevue is a possibility, but stressed nothing is finalized.
