RALEIGH, N.C. — Saturday night traffic around the fair was eased after rapper Travis Scott’s concert planned at PNC Arena in Raleigh was postponed earlier in the day.
The indoor concert was slated for Saturday at 8 p.m. Organizers said ticket holders should keep their tickets, which will be honored on another date — yet to be announced.
Many fans were left blindsided by the announcement, with some still arriving to PNC Arena Saturday night unaware the concert had been postponed. An announcer at PNC Arena said the concert was postponed due to “reasons beyond our control.”
Fans who did show up are hoping an announcement for a new show will be made soon.
“They just told me they have no explanation [for] why he’s not here,” said Tyler Long. “Nothing to stress over, but at the same time, Travis, I wish you were here, you feel me?”
Some concert goers traveled in to watch him perform, including Charlie Bodenstein, who came from Miami to attend the concert.
The concert would’ve been Bodenstein’s first.
“Honestly, it’s really disappointing,” Bodenstein said.
Scott performed at PNC Arena on Friday night. A second Raleigh show on Saturday was added to the Utopia-Circus Maximus tour due to the artist’s popularity.
The rapper’s social media pages showed no explanation for the last-minute change. Some fans reached out to the rapper on Instagram to ask for an explanation but did not get a response.
WRAL News is working to learn why the show was postponed.
Traffic conditions heavy Friday
Traffic was heavy around the North Carolina State Fairgrounds on Friday night due to the concert and the first weekend of the fair.
Some businesses along Hillsborough Street took advantage of the situation by converting their parking spaces into paid parking areas.
“We’re usually 80 to 90% down for the week during the fair,” said Tommy Hastings from Burke Brother’s Hardware. “Getting back sometimes, traffic will be a mile and a half.”
During this time, the traffic in the area worsens each year, and local stores are significantly affected.
Traffic congestion can be severe, sometimes stretching for miles. With the opening weekend coinciding with the Travis Scott concert on Friday, parking options become even scarcer.
Visitors like Tina Crews had to spend considerable time circling for parking Friday and ended up walking a mile to the fairgrounds.
“Unfortunately we couldn’t park at PNC Arena so we had to find other parking,” Crews said.
Crews and other people will park far away to see the event they’ve been waiting for all year.
“We circled around probably about 30 minutes and then we got free parking and it was about a mile away, so it was worth it,” Crews said.
Additionally, ongoing construction on Hillsborough Street adds to the traffic challenges. While the North Carolina Department of Transportation has opened extra lanes to alleviate congestion, considering an alternate route might be a wise choice to avoid the expected traffic snarls.
Expect longer travel times and plan ahead if you’re going to the fair during this busy time.
WRAL meteorologists forecast rain on Saturday to wrap up around 4 p.m., enough time for people to enjoy a damp evening at the fair.
