Vancouver’s English Bay will be bathed in light Wednesday night as the city enters the second evening of the 28th annual fireworks extravaganza.
The Honda Celebration of Light pyrotechnics display begins promptly at 10 p.m., with a performance by Sweden’s Unique Pyrotechnic. For the first time, the event features a theme, which was selected by a public vote: “Love.”
More than 400,000 people are expected to descend on English Bay, Vanier Park and surrounding beaches to take in the show.
READ MORE: Honda Celebration of Light: South Africa, Sweden and South Korea to light up the sky
But with that many bodies squeezed into downtown Vancouver, you’ll want to plan ahead if you’re attending.
“It’s a busy night, there is no doubt about it,” said Celebration of Light executive producer Paul Runnals.
The festival is recommending that visitors walk, bike or take transit to get downtown. Runnals said the main message is to leave the car at home.
“The West End gets closed down, it’s really hard to get in and out of and it just adds to the congestion,” he said.
WATCH: Grab a bite at Honda Celebration of Light
Where to watch
Popular viewing points for the fireworks include English Bay, Second Beach, Sunset Beach, Vanier Park and Kits Beach.
The festival has set up a licensed, free, all-ages stage area at Second Beach with performances and food trucks before the fireworks.
People who want a guaranteed good view, along with food, drinks and a readily accessible washroom can buy VIP tickets for one of four viewing sites.
READ MORE: What to know if you’re attending the Celebration of Light
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At English Bay, 12 lettered marker signs labelled “A” through “L” will be posted to help people find one another.
Electronic “Beach Full” signs will also be activated to let people know when beach areas are at capacity. In that case, new arrivals will be redirected to another viewing location.
Anyone planning to watch from Kits Beach, Sunset Beach or Kitsilano Point should be aware that those beaches have been closed to swimming due to high levels of E. coli bacteria.
WATCH: Trucks block West End roads ahead of 2017 Celebration of Light fireworks
Safety and security
Fireworks attendees are being reminded to be on their best behaviour, and police will be on hand to ensure security.
TransLink is also adding extra transit police to the beat on Wednesday evening.
Alcohol is strictly banned at the event, and police will be conducting checks, according to Vancouver Police Departmetn (VPD) Const. Jason Doucette.
“We’ve got hundreds of officers deployed, and we will pick off people that are deciding to bring alcohol to this family friendly event,” he said.
“Don’t bother. Leave it at home, drinking in public is about a $230 fine. We’d just prefer that it doesn’t get to that point.”
There is also a smoking ban in all Vancouver beaches and parks.
There will be recycling and trash bins on site, but attendees are being asked to be smart with their waste and pack out what they pack in, in order to avoid overwhelming the available bins.
Boaters are reminded to follow safe boating guidelines and keep their license on their person at all times. Alcohol is also prohibited on the water.
WATCH: Highlights from Team Japan’s performance at 2017 Celebration of Light
Transit
TransLink has beefed up its service levels for the event event, with extra trains running on Canada Line, Expo Line and Millennium SkyTrain lines.
The last train for all three lines will leave Waterfront Station at 1:15 a.m. Bikes will not be permitted on SkyTrain after 10 p.m.
TransLink is also adding extra buses to the road, with extra trips in and out of the downtown core starting at 6:30 p.m.
There are also bus detours in place for some West End routes, which you can see here.
The SeaBus will run every 10 minutes until 8 p.m., every 15 minutes from 8 p.m. until midnight, and every half hour after that until the last sailing at 1:22 a.m.
Specific walking routes are being advised for pedestrians headed to transit from the West End after the fireworks wrap up:
- Burnaby Street for the SkyTrain and Canada Line
- Beach Avenue for Yaletown Station
- Guildford Street to access Georgia Street bus routes
WATCH: Successful first night of 2017 Celebration of Light in English Bay
Road closures and parking
Parking in the West End on Wednesday night will be restricted to residents who have either a local parking permit, or vehicle registration that shows a neighbourhood address.
There are also multiple road closures in effect.
In Kits Point, the closures will apply from 6 p.m. to 11:30 p.m., while in the West End they will apply from 7 p.m. to 11:30 p.m.
- Davie Street will be closed from Burrard Street to Denman Street
- Denman Street will be closed from Beach Avenue to Alberni Street
- Pacific Street/Beach Avenue will be closed from Burrard Street to Stanley Park
- Eastbound, Beach Avenue will be closed at Davie from 10 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.
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