BY LISA DONOVAN
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Cincinnati police expect at some point to close the downtown core to vehicle traffic this weekend as crowds grow at the Coors Light Festival at Cinergy Field and the Ujima Cinci-bration street festival in the business district.
A contingency plan has been created in the event of gridlock, which calls for police to close downtown streets bounded by Central Avenue, Central Parkway, Eggleston Avenue and Third Street.
"If we get gridlock, cars unable to move, safety vehicles unable to get through, then we're going to move traffic to outside the perimeter," said Deputy Safety Director Rodney Prince.
"I expect at some point in time, we may have to go to that," Mr. Prince said.
That means street parking would be banned, with the exception of official vehicles, in that same area. It now is restricted in only portions of downtown.
Already 5th Street, between Race Street and Broadway, has been closed off for the Ujima festival.
During the three days of festival and concerts, an estimated 100,000 people are expected to converge on downtown.
