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What You Need To Know About Charlotte's Speed Street Festival This Weekend

The 24th annual Circle K Speed Street festival gets underway in uptown Charlotte this weekend. The three-day festival celebrates all-things racing and is expected to draw an estimated 300,000 people ahead of Sunday's Coca-Cola 600.

The festival runs Thursday, Friday and Saturday from noon to 8 p.m. It features live entertainment, free giveaways, kid's activities and appearances by some of NASCAR's top racing stars.

The event is expected to impact multiple city services. Here are a few things you should be aware of:

Street Closures

Multiple streets in uptown will be shut down through Sunday morning, likely causing headaches for commuters and other uptown employees.

Tryon Street will be shut down between Stonewall Street and Trade Street until 6 a.m. Sunday. Cross streets between Church Street and College Street will also be closed until 6 a.m. Sunday, except between 6 and 9:30 a.m. Friday, during which the streets will reopen for the morning rush hour.

Public Transit

City officials are urging the public to use public transportation to get in and out of uptown Charlotte to help cut down on traffic and already-scarce parking.

In particular, the city is encouraging people to use the light rail, noting that Speed Street is the city's first major event since the new Blue Line extension opened up in February. ("We would love to see ridership go up!" CMPD Maj. Gerald Smith told reporters on Thursday.)

The Blue Line runs every 7 and a half minutes on weekdays until 7 p.m. Afterward, it runs every 15 minutes. On Saturdays, the train runs every 7 and a half minutes until 11 a.m., after which it runs every 15 minutes.

In addition to regular bus and train service, CATS will be operating a shuttle to the Charlotte Motor Speedway on Sunday.

Music Lineup

In addition to the regular free entertainment, the festival will feature a number of musical acts each night at Romare Bearden Park that require tickets.

Tickets are $25 when bought in advance, and $35 on the day of the show. Here's the weekend's lineup:

Thursday, May 24

  • 6 p.m. - Gates Open
  • 6:30  - Reaves
  • 7:15 - Jaggermouth
  • 8 p.m. - Toyota Car Giveaway and Scholarship Giveaway
  • 8:45 p.m. - Judah & The Lion

Friday, May 25

  • 6 p.m. - Gates Open
  • 6:30 p.m. - Travis Denning
  • 8 p.m. - Easton Corbin
  • 9:45 p.m. - Chase Rice

Saturday, May 26

  • 6 p.m. - Gates Open
  • 6:30 p.m. - Lindsay Ell
  • 7:15 p.m. - Coca-Cola Racing Family Driver Q&A
  • 8 p.m. - Brett Young
  • 9:45 p.m. - Dustin Lynch

Trash And Recycling

With every major event comes a major amount of trash. Last year, the city collected about 10 tons of trash, and two tons of recycling over the course of the weekend.

Charlotte's Solid Waste Services will be working around the clock this weekend to keep the city looking tidy. The department will run three crews each day, beginning at 8 a.m. and ending whenever the crowds have dispersed.

Also, while we're here, the city would like to remind you that yes, trash and recycling pickup with continue uninterrupted on Memorial Day.

For more information on the weekend's activites, as well as a full schedule of events, visit http://600festival.com/speed-street-about/

Nick de la Canal is an on air host and reporter covering breaking news, arts and culture, and general assignment stories. His work frequently appears on air and online. Periodically, he tweets: @nickdelacanal