Mobility planning for major events: Transportation planning shapes the entire experience
July 07, 2026
{
"description": "",
"ideasArticleShareLabel": "Share",
"networks": [
"linkedin",
"twitter",
"email"
]
}
Mobility planning can make or break a major event. From wayfinding to real-time operations, integrated planning is essential to success.
{
"text": "
What do people remember about major events? The match-winning try at the Rugby World Cup. Taylor Swift’s surprise songs on the Eras Tour. The record-breaking 100-metre sprint at the Olympic Games.
But here’s the reality: The success of a major event isn’t only defined inside the venue—it’s defined by how people move through it.
If it’s chaos getting in or out, or the venue is hard to navigate, we’ll remember that instead. Poor mobility and transportation planning can make or break an event—and for multiday or repeat events, it can even influence whether people come back at all.
Getting people to and from major events is no small task. Think of the FIFA World Cup matches. The Australian Open. The Formula 1 Grand Prix. These events attract enormous crowds—hundreds of thousands, sometimes millions of people.
" }Share
{
"description": "",
"ideasArticleShareLabel": "Share",
"networks": [
"linkedin",
"twitter",
"email"
]
}
{
"altText": "View of the Brisbane waterfront at night with the building lit up announcing Brisban hosting the 2023 olympics by using interior lights to create the announcement.",
"captionStyle": "ideas",
"large": "\/content\/dam\/stantec\/images\/ideas\/blogs\/029\/bne\u002D2032\u002Dadobestock\u002D1359457372.jpg",
"medium": "\/content\/dam\/stantec\/images\/ideas\/blogs\/029\/bne\u002D2032\u002Dadobestock\u002D1359457372.jpg.transform\/medium\/image.20260706.jpeg",
"placeholderDescription": "Open the dialog and add the title and the description.",
"placeholderTitle": "Drag and drop an image from content finder.",
"showPlaceholder": false,
"small": "\/content\/dam\/stantec\/images\/ideas\/blogs\/029\/bne\u002D2032\u002Dadobestock\u002D1359457372.jpg.transform\/small\/image.20260706.jpeg",
"title": ""
}
Brisbane, Australia, is hosting the Olympic Games in 2032.
{
"text": "
And it’s not just spectators. Athletes, performers, officials, media, sponsors, and the workforce behind the scenes all need to get to, from, and around the event without disruption.
Getting it right doesn’t happen by chance. It’s the result of early, integrated transportation planning. It requires close coordination across multiple interested parties and real-time decision-making as conditions change. That way, attendees are left with only the best memories of the event.
How do we do it? Here’s a look inside transportation planning for these major events.
From arrival to departure: Effective mobility and transportation planning for major events
For major events, we begin mobility and transportation planning months in advance. It requires coordinating perhaps 15-plus interested parties. This includes event organizers and transportation agencies; also at the table are local government and rideshare providers. We’re all working toward one shared goal: moving people as safely and efficiently as possible.
For event organizers, this means engaging transportation planners at the earliest concept stage—not after venues are locked in.
We must think about the entire attendee journey—including how they decide to get to the event in the first place. Clear, consistent information about travel options before the event spreads demand across the network. Once people are on the move, everything needs to work together. Public transportation, rideshare, walking, cycling—it’s one system.
Let’s take a look at the Australian Open. At this annual tennis event, we’ve started integrating micromobility operations into the system, including dedicated e-scooter and bicycle parking. This small change, to make that type of parking more accessible, helped support an increase in people riding to the event. Quite simply, it gives people more options while taking pressure off the rest of the network.
" }Creating good experiences at these major events provides an opportunity to introduce and support long-term behavior changes.
{
"text": "
Small, targeted interventions can shift behaviour at scale. For event organizers, this means building flexible, multimodal options into planning from the outset.
Event wayfinding is where the detail really matters. Tourists come from far and wide. A quarter of the 1.37 million people who attend the Australian Open travel from interstate or overseas. In unfamiliar environments, clear and consistent information is critical when it comes to moving people around.
In past Australian Open events, there has been a misalignment across various platforms in the advertised walking times to specific destinations. Although minor, misleading information erodes attendees’ trust and results in unnecessary confusion.
The user experience breaks down where information is inconsistent, not just where infrastructure fails. Event teams should prioritize a single source of truth for all mobility information across platforms.
And while the goal is always to provide a seamless experience, transportation planning also means preparing for delays and disruptions. We develop scenario-based playbooks ahead of time, so we can respond fast when things don’t go to plan. On the ground, we’re monitoring the network in real time from our operations center. We’re working with various teams to adjust pedestrian flows, tweak transport operations, or even change traffic signal timings on the fly.
" }
{
"altText": "Gabriel Bortoleto of Brazil drives the Audi Revolut F1 Team R26 Renault during the race at the 2026 Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park in Melbourne, Australia",
"captionStyle": "ideas",
"large": "\/content\/dam\/stantec\/images\/ideas\/blogs\/029\/formula\u002D1\u002Daustralia\u002Dadobestock\u002D1941185452.jpg",
"medium": "\/content\/dam\/stantec\/images\/ideas\/blogs\/029\/formula\u002D1\u002Daustralia\u002Dadobestock\u002D1941185452.jpg.transform\/medium\/image.20260706.jpeg",
"placeholderDescription": "Open the dialog and add the title and the description.",
"placeholderTitle": "Drag and drop an image from content finder.",
"showPlaceholder": false,
"small": "\/content\/dam\/stantec\/images\/ideas\/blogs\/029\/formula\u002D1\u002Daustralia\u002Dadobestock\u002D1941185452.jpg.transform\/small\/image.20260706.jpeg",
"title": ""
}
Our teams have supported transportation planning for the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne for almost 30 years.
{
"text": "
Transportation planning in practice: Managing movement at the Australian Grand Prix
The approach to mobility and transportation planning varies depending on the type of event and where it’s held. Some events are delivered in temporary environments—like the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix, which transforms a public park into a major event precinct once a year. For these, temporary infrastructure plays a big role in the event.
In 2026, almost half a million people attended the Grand Prix over four days, including 137,869 on race day alone. We’ve supported transportation planning for the Grand Prix for almost 30 years, giving us a deep understanding of how the event operates in practice. That experience is now traveling beyond Melbourne. For instance, our team are applying lessons from the Australian Grand Prix to support Formula 1 event planning in other cities, including the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal, Quebec.
One lesson that stands out? Every event brings different challenges. Plans need to evolve each year to account for record-breaking crowds, insights from previous events, and the introduction of new options to get from Point A to Point B.
At the 2026 Australian Grand Prix, the opening of Anzac Station, a new metro train station just 500 metres from one of the main gates, introduced a new access point for attendees. It changed how people got to and from the event.
Between the station and the event sat a major arterial road carrying around 50,000 vehicles a day. It could not be closed. Ant that required three conflicting movements to be managed within the same space: event pedestrians, regular traffic, and event-related transportation.
The new station opened just a month before the event—so there was a lack of data on its use. This added another layer of complexity. Our teams had little knowledge of how it operated at a baseline level. Additionally, it was unknown how many event patrons would use the new service. As such, multiple plans were prepared and held in contingency to ensure our teams were prepared for multiple scenarios.
On the day, pedestrian flows had to be carefully managed at crossings to prevent crowding and reduce the risk of people spilling onto the road. From the event operations center, teams monitored conditions live. When needed, they adjusted traffic signal timings to prioritize pedestrian movement.
Static transportation planning is no longer viable in dynamic event environments. Planning must now operate as a live system.
" }
{
"altText": "Entrance to Stadium",
"captionStyle": "ideas",
"large": "\/content\/dam\/stantec\/images\/projects\/0121\/australian\u002Dopen\u002Dtransport\u002Dplanning\u002D03.jpg",
"medium": "\/content\/dam\/stantec\/images\/projects\/0121\/australian\u002Dopen\u002Dtransport\u002Dplanning\u002D03.jpg.transform\/medium\/image.20220818.jpeg",
"placeholderDescription": "Open the dialog and add the title and the description.",
"placeholderTitle": "Drag and drop an image from content finder.",
"showPlaceholder": false,
"small": "\/content\/dam\/stantec\/images\/projects\/0121\/australian\u002Dopen\u002Dtransport\u002Dplanning\u002D03.jpg.transform\/small\/image.20220818.jpeg",
"title": ""
}
We’ve helped millions of people comfortably and safely attend the Australian Open tennis tournament since 2001.
{
"text": "
Future thinking: Creating lasting value for communities through transportation planning
Creating good experiences at these major events provides an opportunity to introduce and support long-term behavior changes. It can encourage people to explore their options and find alternatives to car travel. Major events are one of the few moments when cities can reset travel behavior at scale.
For example, at the Australian Grand Prix, public car parking isn’t available on-site or promoted nearby. Instead, the focus is on promoting public and active transportation. It can influence how people choose to travel well beyond the event and support a switch toward more sustainable options.
For mega events, the impact goes even further.
The Olympics or Commonwealth Games often require significant investment in new infrastructure. We’ve worked on multiple Olympic Games—from the Summer Olympics in London and Rio de Janeiro to the Winter Olympics in Sochi and Vancouver—and we’ve seen first-hand how these events can shape host cities long after the closing ceremony. New rail lines, expanded bus services, and improved walking and cycling connections may be designed for event demand. But their value extends well beyond it.
That legacy starts with understanding how people will move on event day. For the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Games, our team used pedestrian modeling to test movement through Gangneung Olympic Park, helping planners understand how shared spaces would perform under pressure. At the Rio 2016 Summer Games, a new metro line and bus rapid transit reduced what had been a three-hour bus journey to around a one-hour commute, changing daily travel for residents across the city.
For Brisbane 2032, that same thinking is already looking beyond the Olympics to how the network will support the city for years to come. Event-driven infrastructure can accelerate citywide transformation. Planning must balance event needs with legacy outcomes from day one.
" }
{
"altText": "Aerial View of Brisbane City",
"captionStyle": "ideas",
"large": "\/content\/dam\/stantec\/images\/stock\/other\/0018\/brisbane\u002Dmetro\u002Dadobestock\u002D221324713.jpg",
"medium": "\/content\/dam\/stantec\/images\/stock\/other\/0018\/brisbane\u002Dmetro\u002Dadobestock\u002D221324713.jpg.transform\/medium\/image.20230412.jpeg",
"placeholderDescription": "Open the dialog and add the title and the description.",
"placeholderTitle": "Drag and drop an image from content finder.",
"showPlaceholder": false,
"small": "\/content\/dam\/stantec\/images\/stock\/other\/0018\/brisbane\u002Dmetro\u002Dadobestock\u002D221324713.jpg.transform\/small\/image.20230412.jpeg",
"title": ""
}
Significant investment in new infrastructure can serve a city long after the event is over.
{
"text": "
Moving millions: Why mobility and transportation planning is make or break for major events
Mobility and transportation planning is invisible when it works. But it shapes people’s entire experience of a major event—from the moment they walk out the door to when they return home.
As events grow in scale, mobility becomes more complex. Larger crowds and evolving transport networks mean there’s less room for error. Success comes from planning early, staying connected across teams, and being ready to adapt as conditions shift.
For event organizers and cities, the message is clear: mobility planning must be embedded from the earliest stages—not layered in later. Because people don’t just remember the event—they remember how easy it was to be part of it.
And when done well, mobility planning doesn’t just support events—it shapes cities long after the crowds have gone.
" }