For those who do their holiday shopping the brick-and-mortar way, Black Friday is here. That means bargains, but also lines of people and potential traffic problems.
Several major shopping facilities in metro Atlanta reported parking lots at least three-fourths full as of noon, and most were at more than 85 percent of capacity.
And shoppers queued up at some big-box stores late Thursday and early Friday to try to get some deals.
“I’m looking to grab a TV, a blender, the vacuum cleaner that moves by itself, and a couple of DVDs,” shopper Rodriquis Baker told Channel 2 Action News at a Target store in the Edgewood district in northeast Atlanta.
OUTLET MALL: Traffic flow at the @OutletATL has been converted to a one way flow around the mall allowing for two traffic lanes to ease congestion. All inbound traffic is flowing to the right upon entering. Please follow the directions of the parking attendants. pic.twitter.com/UEBzOdu8VB
— Woodstock Police, GA (@WoodstockPD) November 24, 2017
Shoppers in Dunwoody were more than happy to line up late Thursday in search of low prices at a Best Buy store. Most of them told Channel 2 they were trying to get their hands on a 50-inch 4K TV for $179.
A general manager at the store said in-store sales are seeing growth.
"People still want to come out to look, to feel, to see their product and again the excitement with it," James Steinback said.
Black Friday Delays: I-75/nb/sb in Locust Grove; shoppers trying to get to the Tanger Outlets for holiday deals ;https://t.co/oChLshdbT4; #ATLTraffic pic.twitter.com/I56bSk2x5e
— AJC WSB Traffic (@ajcwsbtraffic) November 24, 2017
Friday, however, brings a full day of shopping and potentially major traffic and parking problems.
As of noon, the following metro Atlanta malls owned by Simon Property Group issued these parking-lot capacity figures: Mall of Georgia, 90 percent; Lenox Square, 85 percent; Sugarloaf Mills, 60 percent; Town Center at Cobb, 85 percent; Calhoun Outlet Marketplace, 90 percent; and North Georgia Premium Outlets, 90 percent.
