As thousands of Bills fans sat in bumper-to-bumper traffic on Sunday, they only had to turn on sports talk radio to hear the reason it took longer than usual to arrive at Highmark Stadium.
鈥淓verybody is talking about the big hole in the ground,鈥 WGR host Jeremy White said.
鈥淲hich is a big, giant hole,鈥 added co-host Nate Geary.
Tailgaters on Sunday marveled at the massive pile of earth that had already been moved for the $1.4 billion stadium in Orchard Park, across Abbott Road from the current facility.
They snapped selfies with yellow backhoes and cranes behind them, as they were drinking Genesee Cream Ale and grilling Sahlen鈥檚 hot dogs.
But fans like Mark Young of Rochester had their party time cut short by traffic snarls resulting from stadium construction.
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鈥淚t鈥檚 horrible,鈥 Young said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 always crowded in here, but today more so.鈥
Tina Rivituso tailgated in the same spot she always does 鈥 on the 鈥渇ieldhouse side鈥 of Abbott Road 鈥 but estimated the construction added an extra hour to her drive time.
鈥淲e packed lunch and dinner,鈥 she said. 鈥淵ou spend the whole day here. You have to.鈥
The western side of Abbott 鈥 near Erie Community College鈥檚 South Campus 鈥 traditionally has hosted the Bills鈥 RV lot, where those with campers and school buses set up to eat, drink and talk about football throughout the weekend.
With that lot closed, RVs were forced into alternate locations and side streets were packed with vehicles. Guy and Jo Delregno of Hamburg drove by the stadium Saturday just to scout out a location.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a nuthouse up there,鈥 Guy Delregno said Sunday. 鈥淚鈥檓 just surprised they don鈥檛 plan better. People are all worried and saying, 鈥榃here do I park?鈥 鈥
The chaos drove the Delregnos and about 40 others to leave their cars behind. They parked at the McKinley Mall in Hamburg and rode a Metro Bus to the stadium.
Starting last year, the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority has been increasing bus service to Bills games, running express buses from suburban malls and from the Metropolitan Transportation Center downtown.
Brian and Barb Bartus of Grand Island began using the service last year. They parked at the McKinley Mall in Hamburg and paid $5 to ride a bus to the stadium.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 mind paying,鈥 Brian Bartus said of the stadium lots. 鈥淏ut I鈥檓 not walking 10 miles when I can (ride the bus and) walk 10 feet.鈥
Most people who got on at the mall were trying the bus service for the first time. They said they were afraid parking would be more difficult with the new stadium construction.
鈥淚鈥檓 really impressed by how smoothly this has been run,鈥 said Juliette Giorgio, who was visiting her mother and had come from New York City.
Giorgio said she had never seen a fan base as excited for a football game as Bills fans appeared on Sunday.
鈥淭his is so great,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 hope Buffalo knows this is so unique.鈥
Annette Payne rode the bus from Buffalo鈥檚 East Side for her job as a cleaner at Highmark Stadium. On game day, she said, traffic around the stadium 鈥渋s torture.鈥
But 鈥渁s long as I get there, that鈥檚 all that matters to me.鈥
As the Metro Bus wound its way toward the stadium on Sunday, more than 50 people hopped aboard. A mass of fans in red, white and blue Zubaz pants grabbed ahold of the yellow bus rails next to their heads and what would normally be a five-minute drive turned into an hour.
Fans said the NFTA probably should have ordered two buses to pick them up at the 10:45 time slot en route to the stadium.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been riding since last year and this is the most people we鈥檝e ever had,鈥 said Bartus. 鈥淭he last two times, almost everyone had a seat.鈥
Many fans said the traffic delays were frustrating but didn鈥檛 ruin their game-day experience.
鈥淚f you鈥檙e in an RV lot, you鈥檙e kind of screwed,鈥 said Jessica McGraw of Hamburg. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e not so happy right now.鈥
Paul Boser of Amherst said traffic was bad but not impossible. He still got to his parking space on the east side of Abbott.
鈥淲e left a little bit earlier, but it鈥檚 not bad,鈥 he said.
Bartus seemed to sum up the attitude of Bills fans best.
鈥淣othing is going to stop us鈥 from getting to the game, she said. 鈥淣othing.鈥