SXSWalk, probably

Trains, shuttles, and road closures: How to get around Austin during SXSW

Whether you're looking to avoid the fest or trying to fit it all in, here's how to get around Austin.

CapMetro/Facebook

Love it or hate it, South by Southwest (SXSW) is here. The 10-day event – composed of four main components: Interactive, Film & TV, Comedy and Music – runs from Friday, March 10, through Sunday, March 19.

Most SXSW venues are walkable and within a few minutes of each other. But there are a number of transportation options you can choose from when your feet get tired.

The festival highly recommends considering all other options before deciding to drive yourself, due to street closures and heightened vehicle, foot, and scooter traffic. Parking downtown also ranges in both availability and price.

Below is a breakdown of road closures and transit options to help visitors know where to go and anti-fest locals know where to avoid.

Street Closures & CapMetro routes
One thing both fest-goers and fest avoiders alike need to know about is the street closures in Downtown Austin during the so-called "spring festival season."

The City of Austin has an interactive map displaying road closures (both full and partial), pedicab staging areas, MetroBike valet locations, MetroRapid routes and more. According to the City, those road closures are in effect daily from Friday, March 10, through Sunday, March 19, from 10 am until 11:59 pm. Check out the interactive map here.

SXSW Shuttles
SXSW offers a free circulating shuttle route that runs between the Austin Convention Center and most festival venues. You can catch the shuttle on Trinity Street outside the convention center.Explore the shuttle route here, including run times.

SXSW also partners with SuperShuttle Austin for rideshare service to and from the Austin airport, as well as with Enterprise for fest-goers' rental car needs.

Walking routes
The Austin Convention Center serves as the main hub of SXSW, and the festival has created a Registration Walking Map showing distances and times listed from downtown venues to the closest convention center entrance.

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Read the full story and watch the video on KVUE.com.

Campus News

University of Texas bans drag shows across its entire system

Photo courtesy of KVUE

The University of Texas has taken a hard stance against drag shows.

Drag performances will no longer be permitted at the University of Texas at Austin's campuses and independent institutions.

The decision was shared by UT's System Board of Regents chairman Kevin P. Eltife, who told KVUE that "university facilities, supported by taxpayers, will not serve as venues for drag shows."

The decision comes less than a week after a North Texas judge sent a letter to UT's System Board of Regents pushing for the ban.

"Rather than promoting anything to do with education, drag shows and related events denigrate women," Tarrant County judge Tim O'Hare wrote to the university. He wrote that these performances "highlight men reducing the perception of women to stereotypes and body parts."

In his letter, O'Hare cited an executive order signed by President Donald Trump on the first day of his second inauguration. The order states that federal funding is paused for programs that promote "gender ideology," among other changes impacting gender identity.

O'Hare stated that Texas Gov. Greg Abbott also sent a letter to the university instructing it to follow the executive order.

Changes to drag performances, DEI initiatives at Texas universities
UT isn't the first Texas university system to ban drag shows from its institutions. This year, Texas A&M also halted drag performances from all 11 of its campuses statewide.

Back in 2023, Senate Bill 12 was passed by Texas lawmakers banning drag shows, especially around children. That same year, it was considered unconstitutional by a U.S. judge.

Read the full story and watch the video at KVUE.com.

drag lgbtqia+universities university of texas