Massive weekend gridlock at Columbus Zoo and Aquarium's Wildlights brings calls for change

The crush of vehicles trying to leave the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium on Dec. 16 wasn't the first, nor the worst.

Having no police presence at the exit gates for traffic control at the zoo's annual Wildlights event was one reason for the traffic gridlock, ensuing chaos and anger of guests. But there are also other reasons and issues that the zoo says it is looking to correct.

Read More: Thousands stuck in traffic jam exiting Columbus Zoo's Wildlights Saturday night

A change of policy in Delaware County

A few years ago, sheriff's deputies in Delaware County were accompanied by Morrow County Sheriff's deputies and police from other agencies when needed for traffic control and other non-emergency help at big events like those at the zoo and Delaware County Fair.

"Back in the day, we would all backfill for people," said Tracy Whited, Delaware County Sheriff's spokesperson.

But when the Delaware County Prosecutor's office learned about the practice not long after Prosecutor Melissa Schiffel took office almost five years ago, the department was advised to go it alone. The exception is for actual emergencies, where so-called mutual aid agreements dictate an all-hands response.

"On the advice of the prosecutor, we can only offer (special duty services) to agencies that have jurisdiction," Whited said.

So when officials of the zoo (located in unincorporated Liberty Township) ask for traffic control help, they have only two choices — the Delaware County Sheriff and State Highway Patrol, which patrols state highways, including Routes 257 (Riverside Drive) and 750 (Powell Road), both of which are entrances and exits to the zoo.

And when deputies and troopers turn down those volunteer, extra-duty traffic assignments, officials can't fall back on Powell, Dublin or Columbus officers to pick up the slack, under the new approach.

Cops valuing their time over money

Increasingly, law enforcement has not been as eager to volunteer for these extra-duty assignments, especially during the holidays.

"Nowadays it seems like most value their time off more than they do the money," Delaware County Sheriff Jeffrey Balzer said. At least 30% of assignments go unfulfilled, he said.

Deputies who do accept traffic details may typically control traffic signals to improve traffic flows in and out of the zoo. They also may direct vehicles using whistles, flares or flashlights.

"Delays in traffic are slow and painful. I know; I've been there," Balzer said. "But it doesn't constitute an emergency."

On Sunday, the day after the zoo lights gridlock, three troopers did help out but really weren't needed due to much smaller crowds. Traffic was not an issue, and there were no delays getting in or out. By midweek, there was little to no traffic congestion at all.

Police union offers options

"This all could be resolved with higher pay," said Brian Steel, vide-president of Capital City Lodge No. 9, the union for Columbus and surrounding police departments.

Ohio State University and the Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus Marathon routinely use police as far away as Toledo by establishing service agreements for such work, Steel said.

And any officer can get "sworn in for the day" to work special assignments elsewhere, he said.

But Columbus officers are paid a minimum of $62.50 an hour, compared to about $45 an hour for the zoo work. And Columbus officers were paid as much as $140 an hour to work in the Short North following a rash of crime and shootings earlier this year.

Township officers, like those in Blendon or Perry, also can work in outside jurisdictions, Steel said, adding "I don't know why it can't happen elsewhere."

Franklin Park Conservatory approach

While it's a far smaller venue, the Conservatory Aglow holiday lights event also attracts sizeable crowds. However, park officials closely monitor expected crowd size to avoid what happened at the zoo.

"For these high-volume nights … we just build out ticket capacity based on our parking capacity," said Heather Popio, director of visitor experience at Franklin Park. "We don't sell more tickets than we have parking spots for."

The zoo's parking lot, at more than 6,000 spaces, is 10 times larger than at Franklin Park, which has capacity for about 650 vehicles, some of which on busy nights end up parked along the entrance road and in the grass.

"We know if we run out of parking, it would be unpleasant for people," Popio said.

The park also doesn't rely on law enforcement for help.

Instead, it hires a private security team to monitor the lot and direct motorists, Popio said.

"We regularly survey our members," she said, "to try to make adjustments to make sure everyone has a great experience."

"My heart goes out to the zoo," she said. "I know it can be tricky."

What's next?

The zoo's Wildlights runs through Jan. 7. Hours are 5-9 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and 5-10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.

Admission is $19.99 for individuals ages 10-59 who live in Franklin County. For those outside of the county, the admission jumps to $29.99. There are small discounts for seniors and young children.

Zoo officials called Saturday's nearly 30,000 guests within a short time "highly unusual" and have offered no concrete solutions.

Tom Schmid, the zoo's president and CEO, added: "We continue to meet internally and communicate with our local partners, local law enforcement and city and county leadership to seek solutions. We continue to encourage guests to come early and leave early."

The traffic snarls have happened before, notably almost seven years ago, on a relatively warm February day when the zoo offered free admission, about 20,000 people were expected. But crowd estimates that day exceeded 60,000, with hourslong gridlock.

A zoo spokeswoman at the time said: "I think the only thing we could have done is to look at the weather and decide not to hold the free day as we had planned for months," she said. "There was no way for us to know that we were going to get that many people."

Then Powell police chief Gary Vest said a real emergency amid the miles of backed up traffic would have been "virtually impossible" to adequately respond to. He suggested that the zoo employ an RSVP system to gauge attendance on free days and have better controls on crowds for special events.

dnarciso@dispatch.com

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus zoo's appeal can also be its downfall following gridlock