South Florida sports fans are hoping for the best when the Miami Heat and Florida Panthers play in front of home crowds Monday night in key NBA and NHL playoff games.
And commuters might want to hope for the best, too.
Fans will head to the Miami basketball and Broward hockey arenas during rush hour as commuters return from work. This could result in heavier traffic on surrounding roads and streets.
The Heat and Panthers will play home games Monday night, and drivers should take note of possible traffic delays around the downtown Miami and Sunrise arenas before and after the games.
While suburban Sunrise is more wide-open than the narrow, crowded streets of downtown Miami, Amerant Bank Arena is close to the always-crowded Sawgrass Mills Mall, with its restaurants and outlet stores . Nearby are shopping centers with restaurants and big box stores as well as sprawling residential communities filled with commuters.
So expect heavier traffic on the Florida Turnpike and Sawgrass Expressway, as well as Sunrise and Oakland Park boulevards. And if you go to IKEA for a build-your-own bookcase or a plate of meatballs, you might find yourself in for a jam.
And you know what to expect in downtown Miami, around the Kaseya Center, where Biscayne Boulevard and the ramps to I-95, 836 and the MacArthur Causeway leading to South Beach – not to mention road construction – are as much intense traffic, even without big game.
Heading to the arenas of South Florida? Or just try to get home? Here are a few things to know:
Miami heat
Time: 7:30 p.m. Monday
Home: Kaseya Center, 601 Biscayne Boulevard, Miami
Close: Bayside Marketplace, Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, FPL Solar Amphitheater at Bayfront Park, Downtown Miami Business District, Brickell.
Traffic choke points: Biscayne Boulevard from 11th Street in Flagler, Northeast Second Avenue from 13th Street in Flagler, ramps to and from I-95, 836 and the MacArthur Causeway to South Beach.
Pro tip: Whenever the Heat play at home, especially on a weekend, take note of other events in the area and check nearby game schedules. Archt Center And FPL Solar Amphitheater at Bayfront Park.
Florida Panthers
Time: 7 p.m. Monday
Home: Amerant Bank Arena, 1 Panther Pkway., sunrise
Close: Sawgrass Mills Shopping Center, IKEA
Traffic choke points: Oakland Park Boulevard, Sunrise Boulevard, Hiatus Road, Sawgrass Expressway, Florida’s Turnpike.
Advice: If you’re heading to Sawgrass Mills Mall…
