Congestion, police barricades in Atlanta as soccer match collides with presidential debate

ATLANTA — Road closures are beginning to pile up in midtown and downtown Atlanta on Thursday as an international soccer match collides with a presidential debate.

Channel 2′s Courtney Francisco was in downtown on Thursday afternoon as the congestion began.

“Big. This is going to be big,” said Gilberto Sosa.

Sosa traveled to Atlanta from Panama to watch his team play the U.S. in the Copa América tournament

Another soccer fan, Chris Crerar came from Florida.

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“I had no clue that the debate was going to be here. So, that kind of amped the fear with traffic and stuff,” said Crerar.

If you’re going downtown where the soccer match is being held at Mercedes Benz Stadium, expect road closures all around Hyatt Regency.

Atlanta police have closed Peachtree St., Baker Street and John Portman Blvd. in that area.

In Midtown, police closed half a mile of 10th street from Spring St. to State St. on Georgia Tech’s campus.

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“When we got here, we were pretty excited about the debate,” said Mitchell Smith.

Locals said they would jump on MARTA and get right to the soccer game if it were them. Another option would be to pay to park in lots near Olympic Park or valet at hotels.

That comes with a warning from police. Officers are reminding people to clear their cars of any valuables and guns to avoid criminals stealing them while parked.

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