CHARLOTTE, N.C. — With thousands of people in Charlotte this week for the PGA Championship, officials are encouraging fans to take the light rail to get to Quail Hollow Club.
Officials say anyone with a valid PGA Championship ticket will be able to ride the CATS LYNX light rail system for free to the Sharon Road West Station, where a complimentary shuttle bus will take them to Quail Hollow’s Main Spectator Bus Terminal.
Channel 9’s Elsa Gillis tested out the ease of taking the mode of transportation on Day 2 of the major event.
She started at the Scaleybark Station on South Boulevard.
From there, she took the light rail to the shuttle stop on Sharon Road West, where three shuttles were lined up ready for fans.
Once loading up the bus, it was a 3-mile drive to Quail Hollow where she was dropped off at the gates.
[LINK: Parking and transportation]
In total, it took the crew 65 minutes to get from the Channel 9 studio on North Tryon Street to the Quail Hollow Club.
PGA fans Gillis met along the way said they loved having the light rail as an option.
"We stayed a hotel that we thought was fairly close to the LYNX line, we thought it would be a problem getting in the parking lots at the PGA,” Donna Gregory said.
[Click here for more information on parking and train schedules]
"It was convenient, it was easier to park in uptown and come down here and utilize public transportation," PGA fan Mark Munn said.
It was a smooth ride, but our crews ran into one problem: parking.
The lot at Scaleybark was full when they arrived and they were lucky to find parking on the street. Other people told Channel 9 they experienced the same thing and took a chance by parking illegally at other parking lots along light rail stops.
Uber an option to get to tournament
Uber is one of only a few options golf fans have to get to and from the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow.
Eyewitness News anchor Blaine Tolison put it to the test on Monday.
Tolison started at the WSOC-TV studios on north Charlotte.
"So here we go. We're going to request our Uber from the WSOC-TV studios on North Tryon Street, and here it is for an UberX on a Monday, at this hour for $21.78. Confirm pickup. All right, the clock is ticking," Tolison said as his trip got underway.
Tolison's Uber showed up within five minutes, and he kept the clock running as he made his trip to south Charlotte.
The Uber driver, William, said he expects to make good money this week. Tolison's Uber trip cost about $20 for the 13-mile trip down I-77.
Williams said he predicts rates to surge.
The extra charge for an Uber during busy events will be at least two or three times more. That's a $40 to $60 trip.
Uber doesn't drop you off right at Quail Hollow. You will be dropped off a mile and a half away, at the Quail Hollow Presbyterian Church.
"It took us 35 minutes to get here,” Tolison said. “Now that we're at the Uber lot, we have to take a shuttle to get to the PGA Championship."
Uber rides can't linger. Traffic will keep moving through lanes on the lot at the corner of Park and Smithfield Church roads.
"They got, like, three or four lanes set up, so I think it's going to be a very quick process,” Uber rider Mark Pak said.
"It was a little strange with the things, but good so far, I guess. Not too busy,” Uber rider Maddie Early said.
Tolison boarded the shuttle and arrived at Quail Hollow.
"Here is the time, a little over 50 minutes here, and it is Monday, and things are only going to get busier,” Tolison said.
By Thursday, based on what Tolison found out on Monday, you might want to give yourself a few hours just to get there.
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