Townsville 500: Refreshed, Rejuvenated and Roaring to go

North Queensland’s largest annual sporting event – the Townsville 500 – has undergone a complete overhaul, making for a revamped and improved event precinct.

Townsville 500 event goers will enjoy ease of access, a smooth flowing event precinct and enhanced viewing options as part of the overhaul to create a more fan-friendly journey.

Tickets for the 2014 event went on sale today via Ticketek.

A key element is a new drop-off zone at Brodie Street where buses, taxis and the general public can set down passengers right at a new entry gate, allowing for a convenient and easy entry.

Merchandise Alley will be relocated to the western end of the circuit with the Saturday night concert venue moving to the CBD or strand area closer to restaurants, bars and the central city.

V8 Supercars CEO James Warburton said the rejuvenated precinct will be better functioning with more flow for an improved experience for all event goers.

“The Townsville 500 is a spectacular event as it is but we want to improve on the experience with a new layout that is easy to access, easy to get around and with superb viewing,” said Warburton.

“We started with a blank canvas with the exception of the track and permanent buildings to develop a layout that matched the key criteria of taking our fans on a journey.

“The streamlined flow of the precinct will allow fans to experience all aspects from support categories to dining to merchandise alley; it’s all about our fans having a great time trackside.”

Fans will get brand new grandstands with fold-down stadium seating, providing 500 additional seats at key viewing points around the track. Corporate hospitality has also been improved, with premium hospitality including seating at the front of the trackside suites. 

Other enhancements include a new grass spectator mound at turn 13 – a prime vantage point of the final turn and the main straight which replaces the grandstand.

Support categories are being relocated, moving from outside the precinct to the middle of the circuit, making them more accessible and allowing fans to have a more hands on experience. The former support category paddock will transform into the dynamic and easy access drop-off zone.

Warburton said the refreshed approach to the event was supported by the Townsville City Council and the Queensland Government.

“The Townsville City Council are great supporters of this event and continue to be 100 per cent committed to creating a bigger, better and more exciting event for all.”

Townsville’s acting mayor Cr Vern Veitch said the revamp was important to ensure the Townsville 500 continued to be one of the most popular V8 Supercar events in Australia.

“The Townsville 500 is now coming up to its sixth year and without a doubt the Supercars are our region’s super event. It’s great that V8 Supercars are looking at new ways to provide fans with a better all-round experience both on and off the track, and boost opportunities for local businesses,” Cr Veitch said.

“The secret to any great event is keeping things fresh so people will want to come back and the council is working with V8 Supercars to help that happen.”

Townsville Enterprise’s General Manager Tourism and Events Patricia O’Callaghan welcomes the new look event and says moving the concert away from the events precinct will give visitors to the city better look at what’s on offer.

“We have some fantastic locations throughout the city that would be perfect to host the concert for what’s become the biggest event on Townsville’s events calendar.

“The Townsville 500 V8 Supercars is one of the city’s signature events and it is important for events surrounding the V8s to leverage off the increased visitation numbers over this period and give visitors to our city the best possible experience.”

Minister for Tourism, Major Events, Small Business and the Commonwealth Games Jann Stuckey welcomed the announcement and said the changes would further enhance the event experience for visitors in 2014.

“These changes follow a new agreement between the Queensland Government and V8 Supercars, which will see the continuation of races in Townsville, on the Gold Coast and in Ipswich until 2016,” Ms Stuckey said.

“Next year’s Townsville 500 promises to deliver more variety and excitement, and our Government, through Tourism and Events Queensland, is proud to support the race as a major event for the region.

“Backing major events such as this will help us achieve our goal to double annual overnight visitor expenditure from $15 billion to $30 billion by 2020.”

The Townsville 500 is supported by the Queensland Government through Tourism and Events Queensland as part of a growing calendar of sporting, cultural and regional events throughout the State.