Summernats and its associated City Cruise and Fringe Festival means there are more road closures and public transport changes being implemented across Canberra. Photo: Summernats.
The rubber hits the road from Thursday (8 January) for Summernats and that means motorists will need to remember more road closures and public transport changes to accommodate the event.
It all kicks off with the Summernats City Cruise, which is on Thursday from noon to 1 pm. This means there will be temporary rolling closures from 11 am until 1:30 pm along the southbound lane of the Federal Highway from Antill Street (Watson) to the Barton Highway, and both directions of Northbourne Avenue from Flemington Road (Downer) to Bunda Street/Rudd Street (City).
The rolling closures will close intersections as the cruise passes, and apply to all traffic, including motorists, pedestrians and cyclists.
Traffic management, including signage and detours, will be in place.
The City Cruise also means light rail services won’t be operating between the Alinga Street and Sandford Street stops from noon to 1 pm.
They will continue running between Gungahlin Place and Sandford Street, but on a varied timetable:
- The last direct northbound service travelling from Alinga Street to Gungahlin Place will depart at 11:40 am. The first direct service will resume at 1 pm.
- The last direct southbound service travelling from Gungahlin Place to Alinga Street will depart at 11:40 am. The first direct service will resume at 12:50 pm.
The Summernats Fringe Festival will be held Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights (8, 9 and 10 January) from 5 to 11 pm on Lonsdale Street in Braddon.
Lonsdale Street and sections of Mort, Elouera, Girrahween and Torrens streets will be closed from 3 pm until midnight on all three nights to support the festival.
Summernats itself runs from Thursday 8 January to Sunday 11 January at Exhibition Park.
This means the EPIC Park and Ride has already been closed, and will reopen on Monday 12 January at 7 pm.
People who use the EPIC Park and Ride have been asked to use the nearby facilities at Well Station Drive and Swinden Street.
Flemington Road will be closed between the Federal Highway and Randwick Road from:
- 7 am to 11:59 pm on Thursday 8 January
- 7 am on Friday 9 January, to 1 am on Saturday 10 January
- 7 am on Saturday 10 January, to 1 am on Sunday 11 January
- 7 am to 7 pm on Sunday 11 January
Stirling Avenue (Watson) will be closed daily from the Federal Highway to Aspinall Street. The road will be closed from 7 pm, Thursday 8 January, to 7 pm, Sunday 11 January (local traffic excepted).
Changes have also been made to light rail and bus services during this time.
Bus route 18 will be diverted from the first service on Thursday 8 January, to the last service on Sunday 11 January, due to the road closures.
Bus stops on Sandford Street, Philip Avenue on the Federal Highway and at Bimberi Youth Justice Centre will not be serviced during the event. Temporary bus stops will be installed at the end of Hoskins Street before Sandford Street.
There are significant changes to the City bus interchange from Monday 5 January, until Sunday 1 February, due to light rail stage 2A construction. City bus interchange platforms 1, 2, 3 and 4 will be closed with alternative arrangements in place.
Light rail services will run more frequently during the peak event hours on Friday 9 January, and Saturday 10 January. Fridays peak hours are from 6:30 to 11:30 pm, and Saturdays are from 8:30 am to 11:30 pm.
An ACT Government statement urged Summernats attendees to plan ahead before they travelled throughout the city.
“If possible, travel outside peak times, allow extra time for your trip or find other ways to travel, such as using public transport to get to Summernats at EPIC and the Summernats Fringe Festival on Lonsdale Street,” it stated.
“Passengers can plan ahead using many great platforms to check traffic conditions before getting on the road, such as Waze Navigation and Live Traffic, Google Maps and Apple Maps.
“Regular fares apply for all light rail and bus services. MyWay+ offers a range of simple payment options for bus and light rail. You can tap or scan your preferred option on bus and light rail services.”
Fare free evenings on all Transport Canberra bus and light rail services can be enjoyed from 6 pm onwards on Friday 9 January and Saturday 10 January.
More information on road closures can be found here and on transport options can be found here.
