Accessibility
does Electric avenue cater for cater for persons with access needs?
Electric Avenue is committed to ensuring persons of all abilities are able to enjoy our 2-day festival in the heart of Christchurch city. The Festival’s location within the CBD means persons with mobility needs are able to access our festival with some planning and enjoy live music, food and beverages amongst a world-class festival setting.
Electric Avenue is however located within an outdoor, green-space venue. Some high-needs patrons may wish to consider bringing a carer, or making plans in advance to ensure they can enjoy all this Event has to offer. Hagley Park is a reasonably flat venue, however the Festival is spread across a significant area and there may be the need to travel significant distances to see some acts, attractions and stages. There may be some uneven surfaces and moderate terrain (speed humps, cable protection, tree roots, uneven pathways, buried sprinkler heads and pot holes in the grass fields) to navigate while near or within the venue.
Our team are passionate about making your day as enjoyable as possible, so if there’s anything we can do to assist you in your access needs, please contact our accessibility team by email to [email protected]
are there any accessible parking options?
There is a dedicated festival accessible parking area located within the first bay of the Botanic Gardens Carpark. Please note, this area is accessible by permit holders only. The walk to the Festival entrance is approximately 250m and may require some assistance for users with significant access needs (there are permanent sealed speed humps located along the access route).
Finding the mobility carpark area
The armagh street bridge is closed to all vehicles on event day. Please use the Riccarton Avenue entrance to the Botanic Gardens carpark area. You will need to present your mobility parking permit to security or marshals to access this entrance.
If you would like more detailed instructions/maps – please contact [email protected]
Other on street options may be suitable but can be time restricted and require traveling a significant distance to the entrance. We do not recommend leaving vehicles on the closest adjacent streets due to significant traffic management – particularly during the later stages of the event. Road closures may trap parked vehicles for extended periods of time.
where is the accessible entry to the venue?
Wheelchair users or those with limited mobility may access the mobility entry area – on the far right hand side of the main entrance.
what accessible toilet facilities are available?
are there any accessible viewing platforms?
The Electric Stage and Park Stage – our two main outdoor stages, each have a dedicated viewing platform for persons with mobility needs. These platforms are monitored at all times and are accessible to wheelchair users and (where space is available) those with other forms of limited mobility. This may include wheelchair users, or persons unable to stand for extended periods of time. Chairs are available on the platform for use on request. The platform is accessed via a gently sloping ramp. If you have high access needs, please see one of our team members for assistance in accessing this space.
If you are not a wheelchair user, our Security staff may request a little information from you to ascertain your need to use this space – we mean no offence, we just wish for these facilities to be available to those who need it most. Please support these efforts by letting our team know a little about your needs when you arrive at the platform entry.
Persons with access needs are permitted to bring up to one (1) carer or companion with them onto the viewing platform. Please note that during periods of high demand we may request that those who are not dependant upon their companion make room for others with mobility needs. Your companion will be able to stand nearby/immediately in front of the platform.
What accessible concessions are available?
We’ve put in place a couple of simple measures to help ensure that all customers are able to access bar, food and merchandise outlets and other activities across the temporary event venue.
BARS
In most cases, our bar lanes are at least 1m in width, but there are times where this width is not achievable for a range of operational reasons. For this reason, patrons with additional access needs – particularly those in wheelchairs – are encouraged speak to security guards at the entrance to each bar queue, who will usher them through the wider exit queues. While we appreciate this might be less desirable than queues which were designed to be accessible, the big benefit is you will get to skip the queue, making your day with us just a little bit easier!
FOOD
This might prove a little more challenging for those which significant access needs – the vast majority of our food vendors operate from Food Trucks and caravans which by their nature may be out of reach for some of our guests. There are some lower, gazebo style food offerings which might be easier for some guests to access, however our vendors are experienced hosts and we are confident they will go out of their way to make your dining experience as easy as possible. If you’d like to discuss accessible food options, please simply email our accessibility team.
MERCHANDISE & ATTRACTIONS
The official event merchandise stand, located immediately in front of the main entrance, is an accessible outlet – this is an open marquee on flat ground with low service tables that we hope will make shopping for official event merchandise and items from your favourite artists as easy as possible.
There are a number of other outlets across the site, with a broad range of products and services that can be accessed by persons of all abilities. Details of these will be shared closer to the time.
Am I able to bring a carer?
In most cases, companions will require a ticket to enter the Festival.
We appreciate that some of our guests may require significant support in order to attend and enjoy all that this Festival has to offer. In these cases, we are able to provide up to 1 complimentary carer ticket.
To arrange for a carer to attend with you, please simply email our accessibility team outlining your need for a carer to be with you at this event. You will need to check-in via the Info Kiosk, located to the right of the main entrance. Carers are unable to enter via the main entrance.
where can I find information about other access considerations?
We appreciate you may have specific needs that we have not addressed above. If you’d like to discuss your specific situation, please simply email our accessibility team ([email protected]) or visit our helpful Customer Services team at one of the many info kiosks at the Festival Venue.