Austin leaders detail South by Southwest safety, traffic plans ahead of festival

During a March 7 press conference, public health, safety and transportation officials also outlined the steps the city is taking to prepare ahead of the 10-day event. Festival attendees and city residents can expect consistent road closures, heightened police presence and a continued focus on COVID-19 safety protocols throughout SXSW.

Despite Austin and Travis County's recent downgrade to Stage 2 of local pandemic guidelines, regional health authority Dr. Desmar Walkes recommended continued masking over the coming weeks given Austin's status as a travel hub. The festival itself is also requiring masks and proof of vaccination or COVID-19 testing, and will operate a testing site for attendees and workers.

“Due to spring break travel and spring festival season, [Austin Public Health] is still recommending wearing masks indoors, especially when social distancing is not possible, at least through March 20. And why is that? Well, there are lots of out-of-towners that will be coming from places with higher levels of community spread," Walkes said.

Alongside those measures, residents and festivalgoers will also see additional police activity in the city through March 20 as the Austin Police Department works to keep the area around the festival secure. Police Chief Joseph Chacon said, despite expectations of a slightly lower SXSW crowd than usual, APD will be surging its patrols.

"For every SXSW, we staff them differently than a typical weekend in the entertainment district. We bring in many specialized units that are working from our organized crime division," Chacon said. "We will have a much larger presence in the downtown area than you see on a normal weekend by quite a few officers.”

Chacon said the department plans to focus especially on traffic enforcement, gun violence and issues related to human trafficking that often follow large events and conferences. He also said all officers are equipped with Narcan in the event of overdoses, and that APD will be partnering with county and state law enforcement on security. And with plenty of street closures and congestion anticipated during the festival, Chacon also asked for safety and patience among drivers this month.

Traffic control

Chacon and Robert Spillar, director of the Austin Transportation Department, advised residents to either seek alternative methods of travel other than cars or avoid downtown completely, if possible, while SXSW is underway. They also noted that, alongside street closures, parking will be limited around downtown, and strict enforcement, such as ticketing or towing, will be implemented.

Additionally, a no-refusal initiative to combat driving under the influence will run daily downtown from 10 p.m.-5 a.m. through March 20. APD and Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission patrols will also be monitoring for underage drinking and public intoxication around the event area. And Spillar said if any residents do drive downtown and realize they should not drive home, ATD is offering an amnesty program for any tickets a vehicle receives if a driver ends up finding another way home.

More information on safety at SXSW is available on the city's spring festival webpage.