Everyone is familiar with the football, soccer, and lacrosse games held within your local college stadiums but there are other major events that take place, including speeches, graduations, student events, and concerts. While each of these events brings fun, pride, and even money onto a college campus, not having the correct queuing systems can potentially create more chaos than good for the school and the stadiums guests.
Every year universities have to deal with safety both on and off the field. When you enter most college or university stadiums you can see that there are more rules and more checkpoints than ever before. You can’t wait to watch your favorite team or musician/ speaker yet you find yourself waiting in line for a long time, which may be a good or bad experience. The entrances and exits are the major bottlenecks and biggest safety concerns for schools hosting these events. With proper stanchion placement and signage most schools can move guests and students quicker. It’s important to pre-plan for the volume of each line/ queue. When schools take the time to think ahead they save themselves time and money.
Here are a few tips to help you effectively design and plan your stanchion/queuing systems for big games or events:
Engagement – Something people overlook is the importance of keeping your guests or students occupied as they wait. You can have games, prizes, giveaways, swag, or just televisions for the guests to take in as they wait.
Signage – Think about how you will guide them from the parking lot to the correct line/queue, to their seat, out of the stadium, then back to the parking lot. Make sure you have clear, easy-to-read signage that will simplify the entrance and exit process and make it easier on your guests and the employees working within the stadium.
Entrance Queue – This is where you should have a checkpoint with clearly labeled signs to guide guests to the line they need to be standing in. Stanchion sign toppers can help with the process. Having a queue that can be easily modified by changing out the retractable belts creates a quicker entrance for small events. You can modify those systems for larger events by adding more belts. Having a call forwarding system or even a sign that instructs patrons to “wait for next available ticket taker” will keep guests informed through the entrance process.
Exiting – When guests are leaving they want to be able to leave quickly. This is when you should modify your stanchion setup or even break down your queuing to facilitate a large exit section, clearly labeled with signs and a small re-enter section for people who may need to come back. This will stop a major bottleneck and create a safer environment for guests/ students.