People inched along the packed sidewalk in front of the San Diego Convention Center, and inside saw wall-to-wall shoppers and gawkers.
Comic-Con International officially opens Thursday, but the annual preview Wednesday night for season pass holders included sneak peeks of five upcoming TV series.
For many con-goers, however, the goal was similar to Pokémon: Catch as many freebies as possible.
Popular items Wednesday were “Star Wars” toys and “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” items tied to upcoming releases. People left with large bags packed with figurines, comic books and posters.
The Metropolitan Transit System will be making it easier for Comic-Con crowds to travel to and from the downtown Convention Center on the trolley, with increased service through Sunday and mobile ticketing through smart phones.
With the so-called “mTicket,” passengers can purchase and store transit passes on their smartphones and purchase multiple passes on one phone, making it easy to travel with friends and family.
The Green, Orange and UC San Diego Blue Lines will depart all stations every 15 minutes most of each day. Train frequency will increase to every 7 1/2 minutes during peak travel times on the Green Line and UC San Diego Blue Line.
The last trains to depart downtown San Diego will be after midnight. The Green Line’s Convention Center and Gaslamp Quarter Trolley Stations provide direct access to all the activities.
Trolley stops with large numbers of free parking include:
- Qualcomm Stadium: 5,000 free parking spots.
- Old Town Transit Center: 412 free parking spots.
- El Cajon Transit Center: 469 free parking spots.
- Massachusetts Avenue Station: 241 free parking spots.
- Palm Avenue Station: 499 free parking spots.
- And Bayfront/E Street Station: 267 free parking spots.
MTS has also printed a limited quantity of commemorative Comic-Con day passes.
— City News Service contributed to this report.
