Coldplay fans are preparing to see the band acting this week in Toronto, but some say they are worried after mixed criticism about the concert place, Rogers Stadium.
The new outdoor place of 50,000 seats in North Toronto will be the host of the British Rock Band for four performances that will take place between Monday and Saturday.
Maria Stracham, who will see Coldplay on Tuesday and Saturday, said she was “surprised” when he heard people’s experiences at Rogers Stadium.
“I am trying not to stop in all the negative aspects of the advertising that has been circling about the new stadium. I am trying to stay positive, but I would be lying if I said I was not a little worried about some of the security aspects,” Stracham told CBC News on Sunday.
The concerns occur after some fans who attended the inaugural concert of the K-Pop Stray Kids group stated that it took up to two hours to leave, such as DownsView Park’s place and traffic services It seemed poorly equipped to handle the multitude of people entering and leaving the show.
Others expressed complaints on social networks about the long waiting times leaving the stadium and the trips of one hour to catch a train, bus or Uber after the concert.
Stracham said the decision to have Coldplay concerts at Rogers Stadium makes no sense.
“If you are visiting from outside the city, there are no hotels there. There are no restaurants, so you must return to the city center. It simply does not make much sense,” he said.
“I don’t understand why we couldn’t have these shows at the Rogers Center because it is empty every night that Coldplay is playing.”
‘They were not prepared’
Many fans, such as Rebecca Lukowski, who attended the inaugural concert, also complained about the lack of accessibility of the place.
“They were not prepared,” Lukowski told CBC on Sunday.
She said that the stadium was supposed to have transport buses to take people to accessible parking, which was too far from the place, but the ferry never arrived.
The lack of signaling was also a concern, Lukowski said.
“There was no road signaling. There was no signaling for accessible parking. We drove for almost 30 minutes,” he said. “That is very confusing, especially for someone who is outside the city or who does not know the area.”
Mel Farenzena attended the Stray Kids concert with her three daughters. They led for seven hours from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, to Toronto.
Farenzena said she waited two hours in line to fill her bottles in the water stations. Finally, he surrendered and bought water, which cost him almost $ 60 in total.
“We ended up buying six waters from the vendors because we had no time,” he told CBC News, and added that “the 7 pm arrived and thought, ‘no, we are not missing this concert due to water.'”
Kevin Kennedy, owner of Kennedy Crowd Safety Solutions, said it is normal for a new hiccup to experience his first event.
“Not only the crowd is new on the site, so they are not familiar with how the site works, but it is their first time there, but the employees on the site are also new,” he said.
Here and now Toronto9:38How to deal with great crowds in the New Rogers Stadium
The Rogers de Toronto stadium officially opened over the weekend. But concert attendees were left with mixed criticism. Fans are asking for a better control of the crowd after some said they took them up to two hours. There were also complaints about long alignments for bathrooms and limited access to water. Jack Rozdilsky studies crowd control in large events. He is an associate professor of disaster and emergency management at the University of York. I was here and now.
Kennedy said fans attending this week’s concerts must plan in advance and follow the instructions of the place, especially in case of emergency.
“During an emergency, things are a bit more chaotic, and the only thing I can tell fans in that case is to follow the instructions of those who are in the place providing that address because they have a larger operational vision than is happening,” he said.
Live Nation addresses concerns
On Monday, Live Nation Canada responded to the concerns of the concert attendees at the Stray Kids event, saying that “I was already making adjustments.”
“We are already making adjustments based on the comments of the fans and the community and we will continue to refine our operations to guarantee a positive and safe experience for all in the Rogers Stadium and in our neighboring community this summer, working closely with the city officials, the TTC and Metrolinx, the emergency services and our community partners on the road”, the promoter of the concert and the operator said in a statement. CBC.
Concert attendees in the upper stands also complained that they felt their seats moved during the show. Live Nation Canada said that he is aware of the complaints, but that he is “expected as part of the design of the place”, which “exceeds” international security codes.
A seasonal place of 50,000 people comes to Toronto DownsView Park, live, announced Thursday morning. The Rogers Stadium is expected to open next summer. Shawn Jeffords of CBC has the details.
The local councilor ‘Esperanza’ to solve the problems
Lawyer James Pasternak, whose room includes the area where the stadium is located, met with Live Nation Canada, the landowner Northcrest Developments and Toronto Emergency Services last week to discuss possible solutions.
Pasternak told CBC News that the teams “were really determined” to solve the problems posed by concert attendees.
“We hope to be able to solve many of these problems. Responsibility is in the nation live so that this happens, but we will be there to support a safe and pleasant concert experience and make sure that people can go out and get to the place safely and that people have a positive experience when visiting Toronto,” he said.
Pasternak said he hopes to see some changes for Coldplay concerts this week.
“I hope that access to fresh water, especially on hot summer nights, is more easily available,” he said.
The councilor also said that the police are looking to perform some road closures in the area to accommodate the crowds that walk through the streets and sidewalks.
