Traffic and parking rules for the Inkcarceration Music & Tattoo Festival will remain largely the same as last year.
“We’ve got a pretty good game plan,” said Mansfield Police Sgt. Paul Lumadue, who runs the traffic division. “It seemed like people were, overall, happy with the ingress and egress all three days.”
Considering 25,000 people attend each of the three days, traffic and parking are important. This year’s festival will take place July 18-20 at the Ohio State Reformatory, featuring headliners Falling in Reverse, Slipknot and Five Finger Death Punch.
Lumadue said Olivesburg Road, which turns into Ohio 545, will be closed between the U.S. 30 westbound off-ramp to Fleming Falls Road. Barricades will be placed farther out to alert drivers.
“There will be a hard lockdown in that area,” Lumadue said. “If you don’t have a pass to get your vehicle in or credentials to be in the concert, you won’t be allowed past those points.”
The sergeant said the hours for closure will be 8 a.m. July 18 to 4 a.m. July 21.
“In the evening, there’s more free-flow traffic, but we still try to keep things locked down because everything is set up for the concert venue,” Lumadue said. “Residents that live in the area can move in and out.”
He said traffic is normally busy from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. but then quiets down until about 6 p.m. when people start arriving for the headliners.
He said employees at the two nearby prisons, Richland Correctional Institution and Mansfield Correctional Institution, are asked to take alternate routes to get to and from work for the three days.
Police do not close Ohio 13, which runs north and south.
“We try to run traffic in a way that is free-flowing,” Lumadue said, “and then have a path for the parking traffic to get in.
“Nighttime is when it gets hairy on 13. Once everybody starts coming out at the end of the night, we run two lanes of traffic out and only have one lane that can move northbound on Main Street (Ohio 13) there.”
Drivers will have to wait while festivalgoers leave
Lumadue asked for patience.
“They’ll sit there (in traffic) for 20 or 30 minutes before we let them move,” he said. “Some people get frustrated, but we’ve got to get those people out of there. There’s probably 5,000 to 6,000 cars in that parking lot.”
There have been fewer issues the last couple of years since major construction on U.S. 30 has finished.
“We had a couple of years that were pretty rough trying to get people maneuvered around,” Lumadue said.
Drivers heading south toward Main Street in downtown Mansfield will run into construction issues for the ongoing Main Street improvement plan, though Lumadue said Kokosing wants to keep that road as open as possible.
The sergeant said it normally takes 60-90 minutes to clear the parking lots, “which is pretty good when you’ve got 26,000 people.”
Lumadue has worked Inkcarceration the last four years.
“I’ve been bumped by a car every year,” he said. “People need to be mindful of the traffic, especially in the evenings. Watch the officers who are out there. They’ll all have (fluorescent) vests on; they’ve all got flashlights.”
Mansfield police will have 14 officers working traffic and another 20 or so covering the grounds.
“They usually send me about four guys at the end of the night,” Lumadue said. “We’re so busy dealing with traffic that we can’t deal with any criminal complaints.”
Those complaints are generally minor, just the occasional intoxication call.
“We have hardly any (criminal) issues,” Lumadue said. “The medical people are probably the busiest people out there as first responders.”
He said the combination of heat, alcohol and dancing can lead to heat exhaustion.
Overall, though, Inkcarceration is a good gig.
“It’s a lot of work for three days,” Lumadue said. “I look forward to it coming and I can’t wait until it’s over.”
Inkcarceration officials release info on parking
There are two parking lots located near the festival grounds, the Green Lot and the Orange Lot. Parking passes are available for the weekend purchase or single day. The Orange Lot is located off North Main Street, while the Green Lot is off Fifth Avenue.
The opening time of the parking lots will be announced closer to the event date. Overnight parking is prohibited.
All parking is for purchase at Inkcarceration. There is a designated pre-paid accessible parking lot, located in the Red Lot.
Regardless of purchase, in order to gain entry to an accessible parking space, people must have a government-issued accessible parking plate or placard. They may be asked to present a valid ID showing their name matching the name on the placard or plate.
If people anticipate arriving in a vehicle (such as a rental car) and not having a plate with them, email access@inkcarceration.com.
If people purchased motorcycle parking, they will receive a Green Lot vehicle hang tag. While it may be hard to display the pass, use it for directions and it will need to be presented for access into the Green Lot.
Motorcycles will be parked in the paved area of the Green Lot, approximately a 10-minute walk to the festival entrance.
Rideshare drop-off and pick-up will be on Ohio 545 outside the road closure area. This drop-off/pick-up zone is for for Uber, Lyft, taxis, hotel shuttles and all other drop-offs. There is no shuttle service to and from the festival gates, walking path only.
mcaudill@gannett.com
419-521-7219
X: @MarkCau32059251
This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Inkcarceration festival to have same traffic and parking rules as last year
Reporting by Mark Caudill, Mansfield News Journal / Mansfield News Journal
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