Close X
    Sunday, January 12, 2025
    ADVT 
    National

    Vancouver changes tune under Swift spell, with Gastown clock to chime 'Shake it Off'

    Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 05 Dec, 2024 01:31 PM
    • Vancouver changes tune under Swift spell, with Gastown clock to chime 'Shake it Off'

    Taylor Swift's Eras Tour is changing many things in Vancouver, from the tune of Gastown's iconic clock to traffic patterns as thousands of fans pour into the city ahead of Friday's first show. 

    The City of Vancouver is warning of much slower traffic this weekend in the downtown core, not only because of Swift's three concerts, but because of other events and festivities. 

    There will be full closures of several major arteries around the BC Place concert venue between noon and midnight on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, including West Georgia and Robson streets, Pacific Boulevard and the Cambie Bridge off-ramps near the site. 

    The city says in a statement that people need to plan for delays and should walk, bike, ride or take transit to and from the downtown. 

    The steam clock in Gastown is also being brought in on the Swift action, and has been retuned for the first time to play her hit "Shake it Off" every 15 minutes, with a longer sequence on the hour, starting today through to Dec. 13, which is Swift's 35th birthday. 

    The idea started as an April Fools' Day joke earlier this year, but Walley Wargolet, with the Gastown Businesses Improvement Society, says they decided it would be a joyful way to be part of the Taylor Swift takeover of the city. 

    Prev Next

    MORE National ARTICLES

    5 million adults without primary care, surgeries returning to normal: CIHI report

    5 million adults without primary care, surgeries returning to normal: CIHI report
    Seniors 65 years and older are more likely to have access to a family doctor or nurse practitioner than younger adults between 18 and 34, and access to primary care is highest in Ontario and lowest in Nunavut, the CIHI report released Thursday says.  

    5 million adults without primary care, surgeries returning to normal: CIHI report

    Man pleads guilty to multiple robberies

    Man pleads guilty to multiple robberies
    A man has been sentenced to more than two years in prison as well as receiving a lifetime firearms ban after pleading guilty to multiple robberies in the Lower Mainland. Surrey Mounties say Jaden Kahnapace pleaded guilty earlier this year to three robberies in 2021 that all happened within the span of two weeks.

    Man pleads guilty to multiple robberies

    Seizure of guns & illicit drugs in Penticton

    Seizure of guns & illicit drugs in Penticton
    Mounties in Penticton say a search warrant has led to the seizure of several guns as well as cash and suspected illicit drugs. R-C-M-P say it also resulted in the arrests of four people linked to the home in the one-thousand-block of Government Street.

    Seizure of guns & illicit drugs in Penticton

    Trudeau announces massive drop in immigration targets as Liberals make major pivot

    Trudeau announces massive drop in immigration targets as Liberals make major pivot
    The federal government is slashing immigration targets as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau admits the government did not get the balance right following the COVID-19 pandemic. The government had targeted bringing in 500,000 new permanent residents in both 2025 and 2026.

    Trudeau announces massive drop in immigration targets as Liberals make major pivot

    Groups say Jewish students, staff at University of B.C. face hostile environment

    Groups say Jewish students, staff at University of B.C. face hostile environment
    A coalition of Jewish organizations says it is "deeply alarmed" by a rising tide of antisemitism at the University of British Columbia in recent weeks.  A joint statement sent out by six groups, including the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver and Canadian Jewish Advocacy, says Jewish staff, students and faculty members at the university have faced "an increasingly hostile environment" since the start of the academic year. 

    Groups say Jewish students, staff at University of B.C. face hostile environment

    Vancouver begins process of closing homeless encampment at Crab Park

    Vancouver begins process of closing homeless encampment at Crab Park
    Vancouver's park board says it has begun the process of closing the homeless encampment that has been in place at a local park since 2021. The park board says it is talking directly with each of the seven people still in the camp located in the designated area at Crab Park, with the goal of closing the encampment and returning the area to "general park use" by Nov. 7.

    Vancouver begins process of closing homeless encampment at Crab Park

    PrevNext