‘It’s our turn’: Toronto preps for its Taylor Swift era with security, traffic plan

Swift will perform at Rogers Centre for her sold-out Eras Tour from Nov. 14 to Nov. 16 and the following week from Nov. 21 to Nov. 23.

The City of Toronto announced traffic and security measures Thursday in preparation for Taylor Swift’s arrival, warning residents to be patient and plan ahead with huge crowds expected to flock downtown during six scheduled shows.

Swift will perform at Rogers Centre for her sold-out Eras Tour from Nov. 14 to Nov. 16 and the following week from Nov. 21 to Nov. 23, and the city said it is expecting up to 500,000 visitors from outside Toronto.

Tens of thousands of Swifties are expected to use public transit to get to the venue and the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, where fan event Taylgate’24 is happening, while multiple overlapping events at Scotiabank Arena could bring up to 20,000 more people downtown.

At a press conference detailing the city’s plans, Deputy Mayor Ausma Malik said Toronto has been preparing for the tour for months, and has learned from other cities’ experiences with the concerts.

“We’ve seen the excitement generated in each city on this tour, and it’s our turn now,” Malik said.

“We want to make sure those that are visiting have a great time … and Toronto residents have an opportunity to catch the excitement and have all the assurance and information that they need.”

Barbara Gray, general manager of Toronto’s transportation services, said the city will take measures to mitigate traffic, including temporarily closing or restricting some roads around the Rogers Centre on concert days.

“We are planning to reopen all roads by 1 a.m., once crowds and traffic have dispersed following the shows,” Gray said, adding that the city has designated drop-off and pick-up zones for parents, caregivers, taxis and ride-shares.