Going to the College Football Playoff National Championship? Here are the traffic, parking advisories you need to know
Outside Hard Rock Stadium, traffic could become a major problem as heightened security and road closures are just some of the reasons why fans might want to get to the College Football Playoff National Championship game early.
Plus, parking is now completely sold out — if you still need a spot to park, passes are being sold for hundreds of thousands of dollars on resale sites.
CBS News Miami has everything you need to know ahead of time if you plan on taking a trip to Monday's big game against the Miami Hurricanes and Indiana Hoosiers.
Expect long drives and rides to and from the game
Ride-share driver Haresh Pahilwani lives in Homestead, but he made the trip all the way up to Brickell because he wants a cut of all the cash being used to take people to and from the game and its surrounding events.
"It helps me to pay my bills," Pahilwani said. "There's a bonus added all the time and this is the reason why I prefer to do the events."
The Uber and Lyft driver told CBS News Miami he will spend Sunday taking a bunch of short trips around Brickell. And on Monday, he's taking fans on longer trips up to and from Hard Rock Stadium.
"I would like to stay right there where the game is, so whenever people want to book their Lyft or their Uber ride, and they want to get to their home, I'll be there for them," Pahilwani said.
Bryan Meadows and his group are all Ohio State fans. They bought their tickets to the title game, hoping their team would be here.
"Since we booked our flights and everything, we think we'd come down here anyway," Meadows said.
Meadows is using a ride share to get from his South Beach hotel to Hard Rock Stadium. He was in Miami Gardens this weekend trying some local Caribbean food.
"It was about 45 minutes, but that was this morning," Meadows said.
Road closures start before sunrise on Monday
If you're going to Hard Rock Stadium, it will likely be in a car. And the City of Miami Gardens will implement some road closures before and after the game, starting at 4 a.m. Monday, all the way to 1 a.m. Tuesday.
"I know the gates open at 11 a.m. Monday," said Brian Benton.
Benton drove down from Martin County. He's keeping his car in Miami Beach and told CBS News Miami he will get an Uber or Lyft to the game in the morning to beat the traffic and congestion pricing.
"The game isn't till 7:30 [p.m.], but we're gonna be there bright and early and get there as early as we can," Benton said.
Parking passes are going for hundreds of dollars on resale sites.
Eventbrite has a fan bus to get fans from Downtown Miami hotels to the stadium. But that's sold out.
The stadium has a free shuttle from the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel. And UM students with a student ticket can utilize a free shuttle run by the university.
There will be road closures before and after the big game
The City of Miami Gardens shared a traffic advisory on social media, which details the different road closures between Monday and Tuesday:
Pre-game road closures: Monday from 4-11 a.m.
- Northbound Exit 2X on Florida's Turnpike
- Southbound Exit 2X on Florida's Turnpike
- Northwest 14th Court/Northwest 199th Street
- Northwest 27th Avenue/Northwest 199th Street
Postgame road closures: Monday 10:30 p.m. to Tuesday 1 a.m.
- Northbound Exit 2X on Florida's Turnpike
- Southbound Exit 2X on Florida's Turnpike
- Northwest 14th Court/Northwest 199th Street
- Northwest 27th Avenue/Northwest 199th Street