Taylor Swift has finally touched down in Australia, and her first stop on this leg of the Eras Tour? None other than Melbourne. Thousands of Swifties from far and wide will descend on the MCG for three nights of glitter, cowboy boots and epic bangers on February 16, 17 and 18.
This means that the CBD is going to be insanely busy, with public transport under the pump. Imagine how crazy our city gets for the AFL Grand Final weekend, then triple that. Yep, it's gonna be wild – but the folks in charge of Melbourne's public transport network are well aware of the impacts that Swift-mania is going to have, and are putting plenty of extra measures in place to accommodate the influx of people.
So whether you're a lucky concertgoer or just plan to use public transport in the city this weekend, here's what you should know.
What is the best way to get to the Taylor Swift concert in Melbourne?
To prevent the CBD streets from becoming wildly congested this weekend, the state government has strongly suggested that Swifties use public transport this weekend. Transport authorities are pulling out all the stops to get attendees to and from the MCG swiftly (pun intended), including a never-before-seen move of extending the free tram zone. Of course, if anyone could pull off this major move, Taylor can.
So from this Friday to Sunday only, the free tram zone will be extended to the MCG along tram routes 48, 70 and 75 – so fans can travel from the city to the concert free of charge. But needless to say, public transport will still be quite crowded. If you can, walking to the stadium could be your best bet – it's a 20-minute walk from Flinders Street Station and the weather is set to be lovely. So if your pre-concert energy levels and costume choices allow, stretch your legs and stroll on over.
Which trains go to the Taylor Swift concert in Melbourne?
It's not only the trams that are getting a Taylor-induced boost, but trains too – there'll be 150 extra metro train services across the three days, as well as extra regional VLine trains.
If you're catching the train to the concert, you've got a few different options for routes you can take. The closest train station is Jolimont, which is just a five-minute walk from the stadium through Yarra Park, and you can get there via the Mernda and Hurstbridge train lines.
Richmond station is also quite close by, at just a ten-minute walk from the MCG, and is easier to get to with eight train lines stopping there. Concertgoers can take any train on the Lilydale, Belgrave, Alamein, Glen Waverley, Pakenham, Cranbourne, Frankston or Sandringham lines, and then walk from the station via Punt Road.
The pre-concert journey is the last little bit of planning before the night of all nights can begin for Swifties, and it's worth double-checking your route to avoid any hiccups. For more info and details on public transport to the concert, check out the Public Transport Victoria website here.