Some media and customer commentary reviewing the 2019 New York State Fair have expressed frustration with state officials moving the goalposts in terms of admission prices.

Pre-Fair publicity listed criteria for free admission for various categories of patrons–seniors, students, military and others–while reduced admission prices for everyone were available on numerous days.

If you didn’t qualify for a free pass and it was a regular-admission day, you had the option of buying advance sale tickets for $6 instead of paying full price, $10 at the gate.

But after the Fair’s 13-day run began, the Cuomo crew announced more one-dollar days, rendering some of those advance tickets less valuable.

To counter the complaint that those tickets weren’t a bargain anymore, the Fair will accept them next year. But there have been some suggestions that admission should be standardized at a fixed price, perhaps as low as one dollar.

It seems likely that internal discussion of price practices will be held during the off-season with changes possible. That’s fine, but State Fair Hound places another consideration higher than consistent pricing. While the actual exchange of cash to gain entry to the Fair is the most obvious way to look at value, the more important method has to include a look at what you get for your money.

When you consider the bonanza of free entertainment available inside the Fair gates, you get tremendous value for you money, even if you pay $10 to get in. There are so many attractions and shows that are included in your admission price–starting with the incredible value of free concerts at Chevy Court and the Experience Stage–that whatever you pay to attend is dirt cheap.

Go ahead–research what you would pay for a concert by Bad Company, the Mavericks, Grace Potter or Gavin DeGraw at another venue and you will be happy to hand over $10 to hear them.

Then add up what you could pay elsewhere for the many acts available from Hilby to K-9s in Flight, Circus Hollywood to the International Horse Show. There’s terrific entertainment in every corner of the grounds, from the annual pageantry of the Iroquois Village to terrific new displays like the antique boats.

So much is free–listening to music at the Pan African Village and other small stages, getting close to the powerful birds of Hawk Creek, seeing the amazing sand sculpture or visiting the stately Agriculture Museum, even a ride around the perimeter on a tram. All without spending another dime.

There have been ticketed acts inside the grounds over the years and they never seemed to do particularly well with Fair patrons who have gotten used to being entertained for free.

It’s a great deal. So take advantage of free or reduced-price admission days, but recognize how much you get for your money and don’t complain if it’s a few bucks. It’s still a bargain.

Predictably, much of the public conversation and customer feedback after the record-setting 2019 New York State Fair has centered around issue of getting there, negotiating parking lots and accessing internal modes of travel.

The high point–or low point, depending on how you look at it–was day 11, Saturday, Aug. 31. It was expected that completely unmanageable traffic jams would occur that day, though record attendance of 147,749 was a mild surprise.

The reasons for the massive throng that converged on the Fairgrounds were obvious as the Saturday before Labor Day is always one of the best attended, unless the weather is terrible. Not only was the weather lovely, there were major concerts at both Chevy Court and the Experience Stage and the first Syracuse University football game of the season was being screened inside the Expo Center.

The annual fireworks display, traditionally saved for Labor Day, exploded overhead that night (though 10 p.m. was way too late for most). In addition, admission had been cut to one dollar for everyone and parking in the new Willis Ave. lot was free until the lot was filled.

Of course the nitwits who run the Lakeview Amphitheater had to book a popular show that night, something that surely made a bad situation worse. That practice has to stop and it looks like Onondaga County government officials (looking at you County Exec McMahon) have to intervene to make sure it does.

State Fair Hound readers can’t say they weren’t warned. The Hound recommended early arrival to avoid the inevitable traffic mess (Dawn Patrol, Aug. 30, 2019).

Angry visitors made comments on local television news shows and sent critical letters to the daily newspaper. Reporters asked Fair Director Troy Waffner tough questions, many about the accommodations for disabled people and the new bus drop-off location at gate 10.

Though the parking changes and the traffic jam are related, there are at least two primary issues one the table–how to get all those people there and how to park and process them once they arrive.

Barring major land acquisition to allow more entry points, which seems extremely unlikely, it’s hard to see how driving directly to Fair parking lots can be changed to accommodate such high volume. There are only so many lanes coming in.

The time has come for an innovative approach advocated by State Fair Hound, utilizing nearby railroad tracks to bring customers in by local trains. Yeah, it’s seems complicated, labor-intensive and probably expensive. But it would not only provide a route to the gates for thousands of passengers, it could actually be another attraction for the Fair–a fast, fun, exciting, accessible way around gridlocked roads and overheated engines, not to mention overheated drivers.

Trains do bring passengers from out-of-town stations–as the train in the top photo is doing–so why not bring passengers from downtown, Liverpool, DeWitt and other nearby communities on rail lines? There’s a platform near Gate 11 and a tram stop at the corner.

Of course, patrons who arrive by rail don’t take up space in on-site parking lots.

That bubbling mini-train that navigated Broadway this year may have provided a hint for future Fair travel. Let’s follow up on it.

Thanks to the ridiculous water monopoly policy, this price list from the New York State Fair potato stand shows the price for a bottle of tap water higher than that of juice, milk or soda.

Maybe it’s a good idea to submit a comment telling Fair management how you feel about it.

State Fair Hound readers may have felt a little deja vu when they read an editorial in Sunday’s Post-Standard about the traffic and parking issues that continue to plague the New York State Fair. Not only is the theme a familiar one in Hound posts, the P-S even included the following comment: “… the fair risks becoming the punchline of Yogi Berra’s joke: Nobody goes there anymore. It’s too crowded.”

You have read that before right here on Oct. 4, 2018 in a post titled “Was Yogi Right?”

It could be a coincidence, but either way, it’s good to keep the conversation going about how to make a trip to the State Fair less difficult on busy days.

As always, State Fair Hound has some ideas to share, so watch for that here in coming days and maybe later in the Post-Standard.

After 13 days of classic New York State Fair fun, everybody’s a little tired.

Our naps will no doubt be filled with the images of candy apples, marching bands, dizzying rides, cuddly animals and dancing kids.

Unfortunately, sleep will be restless for those haunted by memories of traffic jams, parking woes, upset stomachs and sore feet.

As usual, there were some hits and some misses to consider as those wild 13 days pass. State Fair Hound has often heard those who run our State Fair say they prioritize customer satisfaction over attendance numbers and this year looked great on both counts.

No Fair is perfect, so there are always some complaints and criticisms and we’ll explore them all in the coming days. Growth can create growing pains and The Hound has some ideas to share, so check back often. The 2019 New York State Fair is over, but it’s never far from the minds of true believers. .