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Express lanes added to speed up process to enter Baylor Football games

Posted at 7:44 PM, Sep 23, 2016
and last updated 2018-07-24 21:30:26-04

Baylor University is making changes in an effort to speed up the process to get into football games at McLane Stadium. 

This season, the University added metal detectors, which fans have to go through, in addition to having their bags checked and tickets scanned.

For the Baylor vs. Oklahoma State on Saturday, two express lanes will be added at each entrance for those who don’t bring a bag to the game.

“Hopefully these things will improve the situation,” Baylor University’s Executive Associate Athletic Director for External Affairs Nick Joos said. “I think safety is first and foremost in our minds and getting our fans in as quickly as possible is also very important to us."

In addition, there will be changes made to the existing lanes to help make the process smoother for the nearly 45,000 fans attending the football games.

“The line at the gates without definition just morphed into a mass of people so by defining the lines like Disney people will just flow through the line and up to the entrance point. I think it gives it definition and allows it to move a little bit quicker for everyone involved,” Joos said.

He said the changes come after reviewing video of the flow of traffic at the stadium and feedback from fans and public safety officials.

"People are concerned about getting in on time, getting in quickly," Joos said about the response from fans.

He said lines have been slower this season because of people adjusting to the new system and the time fans are arriving to the stadium.

Baylor University student Thaddeus James said he waited up to 15 minutes to get into the stadium at the past two games.

“I believe it was faster last year. I don’t remember being too much of wait time,” James said.

For other Baylor University students, such as Fanny Terrones and Tyler Hartwig, they have noticed long lines but they have not experienced a long wait. Both have said they arrived before kickoff to the past two home games.

“It hasn’t been too bad, not intolerable for me. I’ve jumped into short lines so it was less than ten minutes so it wasn’t too bad,” Hartwig.

Joos encourages other fans to also arrive early.

"If they would just get in a couple of minutes early. If they do that, they can go through and get in by kickoff,” Joos said.

Communication is also expected to be improved at each gate with fans listening to a recorded message that will tell them to move forward.

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