With Freakfest 2008 just a few days away, officials from the city and Frank Productions met Wednesday to present a traffic plan and event details for Saturday's party.
Madison Police Department Central District Captain Mary Schauf said approximately 200 police will be on hand both Friday and Saturday nights and an additional 45 to 50 officers will implement a full traffic plan in the downtown area.
The Capitol Loop will close around 6 p.m. Friday, and a portion of Gilman Street from University Avenue to Henry Street will close early Saturday for stage setups. Schauf said other side-street closures will go into effect around 5 or 5:30 p.m., but police will try to keep Johnson and Gorham Streets open until about 6 p.m.
As a general rule of thumb, Schauf urged people to utilize public transportation to avoid street closures and traffic delays.
Joel Plant, aide to Mayor Dave Cieslewicz, said only 2,000 tickets out of the 50,000 allotted for the event have been sold so far, but the majority of sales are expected to occur Friday and Saturday.
