Parade Transport Information - Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras

PARADE TRANSPORT

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With major road closures in place and extra services running, public transport is the only way to travel to the Sydney Mardi Gras Parade. Large crowds are expected so please leave the car at home and plan your trip to and from the city ahead of time and consider all available travel options.

Transport services will be affected by road closures and crowds throughout the night. The way you arrive during the day may be different to the way you leave after the Parade. Please be patient and follow the directions of our friendly volunteers and wayfinding staff on site.

Travel on public transport is not free on Mardi Gras night, remember you’ll need to use an Opal card or contactless payment method when travelling on public transport. Remember to tap your Opal card or major debit/credit card on and off when using public transport.

TRAIN TRAVEL

If you are travelling by train, please check that the arrival and departure stations have facilities that meet your access needs.
Trains will run to the city frequently on Parade day until late at night, however please note services do not run a 24 hour timetable on Mardi Gras.
Museum Station will be closed from 5pm on Saturday 1 March until 4am on Sunday 2 March.
To access the southern side of the parade route in Surry Hills, use Central Station. For northern side access in Darlinghurst, use Town Hall, St James, Martin Place or Kings Cross stations.
All patrons who register to the Accessible Viewing Area must alight the train at Central Train Station in 2025. From Central Station you will then be able to transfer to alternate public transport services or the free Mardi Gras accessible shuttle bus service.

METRO TRAVEL

Due to planned trackwork Metro services will run between Tallawong and Central only. Metro will not run between Sydenham and Central – catch trains or buses instead.
Metro services will run every 10 minutes until 5pm then every 8 minutes until midnight, then every 10 minutes until 2am Please note Metro will not run a 24 hour timetable on Parade night.
To access the southern side of the parade route in Surry Hills, alight the metro at Gadigal Station via the Bathurst st exit or alight at Central Station.
To access the northern side of the route in Darlinghurst, use Gadigal Station and take the Park St exit to continue on foot via Park St, William St and Yurong St towards Oxford St.

BUS TRAVEL

The closest bus stops to the parade are at Central Station or QVB Town Hall.
Additional services to the city will run from 3pm, with extra late night buses running to get you home.
Be aware that buses will be affected by major road closures and will be diverting from their regular routes from 3pm.
More details on additional and changed bus services visit transportnsw.info/sydney-mardi-gras-parade.

LIGHT RAIL

The closest stops to the parade route are Central for southern side access and Town Hall for northern side access.
For Parade viewing at Moore Park, use the Moore Park light rail stop.
Services will run frequently until 2am on all lines including L1 Dulwich Hill services between Dulwich Hill and Central, L2 Randwick services between Randwick and Circular Quay and L3 Kingsford services between Kingsford and Circular Quay.

ACCESSIBLE TAXIS, RIDESHARE & DROP-OFF ZONE

The large crowds and road closures around the Parade footprint can make it challenging for taxis and rideshares to safely drop-of and pick-up passengers in certain areas of the City, particularly around Darlinghurst and Surry Hills. An accessible taxi/rideshare drop-off and pick-up zone will be available on the corner of Albion and Bourke Streets, Surry Hills.
Taxi and rideshare companies will not be able to take booking requests for pick-up in areas where there are road closures.
If you are located in metropolitan Sydney, Wheelchair Accessible Taxi (WAT) bookings can be made in advance via Wheelchair Book & Ride. If you are located outside of metropolitan Sydney, please contact your local taxi operator.

ROAD CLOSURES

Major roads along and surrounding the parade route from the CBD to Moore Park will close from 3:30pm on Saturday 1 March 2025 and remain closed until 2am Sunday 2 March 2025.
Motorists are urged to avoid unnecessary travel in the CBD and to expect delays as traffic will be heavy on detour routes.
Large crowds are expected so leave the car at home if you intend to view the Parade.

Key road closures:

From 3:30pm to 1am: sections of College St, Wentworth Ave, Goulburn St and surrounding streets.
From 4pm to 2am: Flinders St northbound lanes from Moore Park Rd to Oxford St, sections of Bourke St, Albion St, Campbell St, Forbes St and Foley St.
From 5pm to 1am: Liverpool St westbound, sections of Nithsdale St, Clarke St and Commonwealth St. Local managed access maintained for residents on Reservoir St, Commonwealth St, Riley St, Campbell St and surrounding local roads.
From 5pm to 2am: Oxford St between College St and Darlinghurst Rd, Albion St between Crown and Bourke streets, Flinders St southbound from Oxford St to Moore Park Rd, Crown St between Albion St and Burton St, South Dowling St between Oxford St and Fitzroy St, and Anzac Pde between Moore Park Rd and Lang Rd, including the Eastern Distributor Randwick exit. Other roads adjoining Oxford and Flinders St will also be closed.
Anzac Pde and Oxford St detours: From 5pm all citybound traffic on Anzac Pde will be diverted via Cleveland St or Lang Rd, and all citybound traffic on Oxford St will be diverted via Darlinghurst Rd.
Eastern Distributor closures: Eastern Distributor (ED) Anzac Pde Randwick exit will be closed from 5pm, and there will be no access to the ED northbound from Anzac Pde. Entry to the ED maintained until 6.30pm via Moore Park Rd. After 6.30pm, access the ED via South Dowling St. The ED Moore Park Rd Bondi exit remains open at all times.
From 6.30pm to 1am: Moore Park Rd westbound from Oatley Rd to South Dowling St, including the ED entry ramp, Greens Rd, Driver Ave and local streets.
Contingency road closures between 9pm and 11.30pm approx (at the direction of NSW Police): sections of Elizabeth St and Castlereagh St between Market St and Goulburn St may close to allow crowds to safely leave the CBD.
Other local closures in Surry Hills: sections of Patterson Lane, Short St, Hill St, Floods Place, Marys Place and Short Place will be closed at varying times before and after Parade between Friday 28 Feb and Monday 3 March for Parade infrastructure set up and the Laneway Festival on Sunday 2 March.
Managed access for residents will be maintained outside of Parade operational hours.

For detailed closure and clearway listing and maps, visit Live Traffic NSW

TfNSW Interactive road closure and clearway map – Mardi Gras Parade 2025

CLEARWAYS & PARKING

With carparks in the city expected to fill early and extensive restrictions on street parking in place, it’s best to leave the car at home and take advantage of the additional public transport services running to get you to and from Mardi Gras celebrations.
If you have to drive and park your vehicle, be aware that roads may close around your parked location. Vehicles are not permitted to drive on closed roads or exit car park driveways onto closed roads at any time unless at the direction of NSW Police.
For parking options in the Sydney CBD visit City of Sydney – Parking.

Special event clearway parking restrictions will be in effect from 6am on Saturday until 2am on Sunday on various key roads along and surrounding the parade route in the Sydney CBD, Surry Hills and Moore Park.

Clearways are strict no-parking zones and apply also to local residents and RMS Mobility Scheme Permit holders. Check signs carefully, especially night before the event as clearways come into effect early on Saturday morning. Vehicles left in clearways will be towed and a fee applies. If your vehicle is towed, you can search your vehicle registration at the Find My Car website to find its new location, or alternatively call 132 701 to speak to an operator.
For the latest traffic conditions, listed clearway locations and maps, visit Live Traffic NSW.

WALKING AND PEDESTRIAN ACCESS

The Parade Pedestrian Map to plan your walking routes from key public transport hubs to the Parade Route will become available in late January 2025.
Pedestrian crossing points will be in place along the parade route from 5:00pm until 7pm. These crossing points will be located on Oxford St and Riley St, Oxford St and Crown St, Flinders St and Albion St, and Anzac Pde and Moore Park Rd. After 7pm, you will not be able to cross until the parade has finished. NSW Police Force may close these points earlier for public safety, so arrive early to secure a spot on your preferred side of the parade route.
Pedestrian access to the southern side of the parade route will be via Goulburn St.
Pedestrian access to the northern side of the parade route will be via Hyde Park South, College St and Stanley St until 6pm. After 6pm, access will be via Park St, William St and Yurong St.
Pedestrian access for local residents and business patrons will be managed access on footpaths at Liverpool St, College St, Wentworth Ave and southern side of Flinders St. NSW Police Force or Event Security may close these footpaths at certain times for public safety.
For the safety of spectators, crowd control barriers will be in place around the set-up area and the parade route from 6am.
To help minimise the impact on residents and businesses in the area, we are continuing the implementation of our wayfinding staff and volunteers in the streets surrounding the Parade. This zone will have an enhanced police presence and strict enforcement of the alcohol-free policy.
Please note that depending on crowd capacity, audience will be redirected to a different viewing location from their intended location by NSW Police Force or our security wayfinders. Residents and business patrons may also be redirected to take a different route.

BICYCLES

Major cycleways in the city centre will be closed as major roads begin to close for safety throughout the day of Parade. Bicycles are not permitted within road closures.
To assist with pedestrian movement, bike share operators will remove the bikes from the precinct prior to the event. Bike share operators will geofence a bike-free zone within the high pedestrian areas from 2pm Saturday 1 March until 3am Sunday 2 March 2025.
Don’t drink and ride. People riding bikes face the same alcohol restrictions as drivers.