More than 150,000 Swifties are set to descend on Vancouver’s B.C. Place Stadium to attend three performances next week, including the final show of Taylor Swift’s nearly two-year world tour.
It’s anticipated that this weekend will be one of the city’s busiest-ever event weekends. In addition to the Swift shows, there will also be Vancouver Canucks games Friday and Sunday and six Cirque du Soleil shows from Friday to Sunday, as well as other events.
At a technical briefing with reporters Thursday, the City of Vancouver, TransLink and the Vancouver Police Department shared their plans on how they’re preparing for the shows from Dec. 6 to 8.
Bathrooms being modified for female-majority audience
Officials say up to 70 per cent of ticketholders are not from the Vancouver area, including about 40 per cent who are international travellers.
Fans who downloaded their tickets before Nov. 16 are being asked to re-download them to make sure they have the most up-to-date information.
Officials told the briefing that stadium bathrooms will be modified because up to 95 per cent of concertgoers are expected to be female.
The Swift shows will have an estimated economic impact of $157 million to the city, according to Destination Vancouver.
Swift’s final show on Dec. 8 will cap off a tour that spanned five continents and nearly 150 performances. Her Eras Tour is the first of its kind to gross over $1 billion US.
Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour was estimated to generate a $282M economic boost according to Destination Toronto. Now that the tour has wrapped up, CBC’s Naama Weingarten spoke to some local business owners about their experience.
Stadium perimeter, road closures
People who don’t have concert tickets, including those who are hoping to snag a last-minute Swift ticket, are being strongly encouraged not to go to the stadium district on the weekend in order to decrease congestion.
City officials said a fence would be erected around the stadium perimeter early next week, and only ticketholders will be allowed to enter.
Concertgoers will not be permitted to line up at B.C. Place before 3:30 p.m. on show days, and no overnight lineups or camping will be permitted.
People are encouraged to take transit or walk and limit driving as there will be several road closures from noon to midnight on concert days. You can see a complete list of road closures on the City of Vancouver website.
The city says those driving should plan ahead and leave early to get to their destination.
A lucky few Taylor Swift fans managed to get tickets to the Era’s Tour in Vancouver for less than $20. They come with a completely obstructed view, but they’re still re-selling for hundreds of dollars.
Extra buses, leave cars at home
Traffic disruptions are expected, officials said, and people are being encouraged to leave their cars at home if possible.
Downtown parking garages are open, but there will be road closures in the stadium district over the weekend. An allocated passenger drop-off and pickup zone will also be set up for concertgoers.
TransLink said the SkyTrain and Canada Line will run until about 1 a.m. PT and more frequently on concert nights. There will also be more buses available.
TranksLink also said it will have shuttle buses for Swift concertgoers to take them from B.C. Place to Waterfront Station after the concert.
A special West Coast Express will also run on Dec. 7 only, to connect commuters from Metro Vancouver to the Fraser Valley. It will start in Mission at 4 p.m. PT and return from Waterfront at midnight.
Police presence
The Vancouver Police Department said it would deploy 700 officers inside and outside the stadium area who will be wearing high visibility vests or jackets.
It said it expects there to be about 250,000 people in the stadium district.
At the briefing, it was also announced that the huge, inflatable friendship bracelet, which has hung at concert venues in other cities, will be displayed around the exterior of B.C. Place.
Addison said police are drawing on the experiences of other cities, including Toronto, in order to develop safety plans to deal with large crowds. He noted there is added excitement because the tour concludes in the city.
“We anticipate possibly in excess of 300,000 people over the course of that weekend, just in the stadium district alone, and our major goal — our only goal — is [to] foster an environment that’s safe and memorable so that people who have anticipated these shows for so long can come and have a weekend to remember.”
Swift’s Vienna shows, which were set to occur in August as part of the European leg of the tour, were cancelled after authorities warned of a terror plot.
Addison said the department was also aware of safety incidents in other cities.
“There’s currently no specific safety threat that we’re aware of, but we continue to monitor, and we’ll continue to assess and reassess. Public safety is obviously our top priority,” he said.
