The New South Wales (NSW) Government has announced Central Station’s clock tower, Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney Cricket Ground, Western Sydney Stadium & Stadium Australia will be lit in a Lavender Haze for 12-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor Swift’s, Eras tour between sunset (7:35pm-7:40pm) of the 23rd of February & sunrise (6:38am-6:40am) of the 27th of February. Eras tour concerts, held at Stadium Australia, begin at 6:20pm* except on the 27th of February when there is no concert currently scheduled.
*Friday’s concert was delayed until 7:49pm due to severe weather.
Central Station’s concourse will also be covered with Eras-themed decorations.
From 3:29pm each concert day, the Tay Tay Swift Express will run from Central to Olympic Park, with stops at Redfern & Strathfield, until 10:07pm. It is free for concertgoers (on presentation of concert ticket which is valid from 4am concert day until 4am the next day) otherwise an AUD$3.47 Opal Card fare applies except Monday when it is AUD$4.97.
With her personal permission, each Tay Tay Swift Express will have Taylor Swift tracks played over the train’s public address system. A survey was conducted for her top 5 songs & these will be played over the course of the 20–25-minute train trip:
Remember, to take into account 15 minutes to walk from Sydney Olympic Park Railway Station to your entry gate at Stadium Australia. All tickets are allocated seating so there is no need to rush to get a good spot. Using this, you can find a Tay Tay Swift Express timetable for Monday the 26th of February for all the trains from Central up until 6:05pm (as the concert is scheduled for 6:20pm) below:
| Central Platform | Central Departure Time | Sydney Olympic Park Arrival Time | Train Duration |
| 7 | 3:29pm | 3:52pm | 22 minutes |
| 4 | 3:52pm | 4:15pm | 23 minutes |
| 7 | 4:09pm | 4:33pm | 24 minutes |
| 4 | 4:23pm | 4:45pm | 22 minutes |
| 6 | 4:29pm | 4:52pm | 23 minutes |
| 5 | 4:38pm | 4:58pm | 20 minutes |
| 7 | 4:42pm | 5:05pm | 23 minutes |
| 4 | 4:50pm | 5:14pm | 23 minutes |
| 6 | 4:58pm | 5:23pm | 25 minutes |
| 5 | 5:07pm | 5:31pm | 24 minutes |
| 7 | 5:10pm | 5:36pm | 25 minutes |
| 4 | 5:23pm | 5:43pm | 20 minutes |
| 6 | 5:28pm | 5:54pm | 25 minutes |
| 5 | 5:37pm | 6:01pm | 24 minutes |
The Tay Tay Swift Express also operates in the reverse direction from Sydney Olympic Park to Central from 3:54pm until 1:15am but does not stop at Redfern & Strathfield before 10:24pm. There is also a special 12-minute express train to Strathfield leaving Olympic Park at 12:39am.
The Tay Tay Swift Express is also operating on Sydney Olympic Park Major Event buses & bus routes 526 (Parramatta to Burwood), 528 (Rhodes to Burwood) & 533 (to Chatswood). However, unlike the above trains, Taylor Swift music is not being played on these buses.
The Tay Tay Swift Express is not operating on the regular Lidcombe-Olympic Park shuttle rail service, the North Shore line north of Central & on express rail services from Campbelltown, Macarthur and Richmond and from/to Blacktown, Schofields, Liverpool, Penrith & Emu Plains from/to Olympic Park.
These trains are a part of 138 extra trains being scheduled for each day of the Eras tour, along with an extra 175 buses per concert day, combining to more than 300 extra public transport services on the network per concert day. Public transport is the best way to get to the Eras tour concert.
Pass-outs for the concert are also not being issued. There are no live concert broadcasts immediately outside Stadium Australia & to ensure safety & security, people are strongly discouraged from congregating in Sydney Olympic Park until 11pm, February the 26th.
It should be noted severe thunderstorms with damaging winds, large hail & heavy rainfall are forecast for the “Sydney area” on the 23rd of February. with “a chance” of thunderstorms forecast at Stadium Australia. The chance of rainfall is highest at the concert’s 11pm conclusion (63% chance) with it at a 38% (8pm) & 18% (5pm) chance earlier in the evening. Only at the concert’s conclusion at 11pm is there a 50% chance of more than 0.5mm of rain…. which isn’t much. Winds are forecast to reach a peak of about 25km/h between 8pm & 11pm.
Official stadium-external merchandise stands open at 12pm each day while stocks last along with Stadium Australia’s box office, the latter of which will be open to assist existing ticket holders only. There are stadium-internal merchandise stalls too from 4:30pm whilst stocks last. All products are sold on a first-come, first-served basis. These shops do not accept cash.
Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour is at Stadium Australia, Sydney Olympic Park from 23-26 February 2024 at 6:20pm with support act, Sabrina Carpenter, building up the atmosphere until 7:30pm*. Gates open at 4:30pm. Tickets are still occasionally being released via official ticket supplier, Ticketek, online here, when possible up until 6:20pm, 26th of February 2024. Tickets can also be resold officially via Ticketek Marketplace here until 12pm the day of the concert.
*Appeared in main concert on Friday due to severe weather.
This is the 2nd illumination of a Sydney building for a living singer. The Sydney Opera House was illuminated purple in 2016 for Prince, who was, at the time, performing in the venue’s concert hall for 1 night only, just weeks before his tragic passing.
Did you know Taylor Swift has never performed at the Sydney Opera House? Due to her popularity, she would have to do a 16-day residency at the Opera House for 1 Stadium Australia concert’s worth to happen so for 4 Stadium Australia concerts that would be a residency of just over 2 months! Michael Bublé performed at the Opera House for the season finale of Australian Idol in 2009 and managed to appear in what turned out to be one of the best pyrotechnic displays ever staged on Sydney Harbour (to give an idea of what Taylor Swift could bring to the House… or Harbour for that matter!):
As the illumination is not on the Sydney Opera House or Harbour Bridge & the fact musical concerts have no existing special flagship Sydney Spectacular status yet (unlike fireworks displays, light shows, projection mapping shows, air shows, military salutes, rugby league matches & a future addition to be announced soon – but it’s not musical concerts!), Taylor Swift’s Eras tour will not be considered as an Extraordinary Sydney Spectacular. In any case, the Stadium Australia concert record attendance is currently held by Adele’s LIVE 2016 tour at 98,364 people per concert. That record would need to be equalled or broken first.
Taylor Swift’s songs, Today Was A Fairytale, Style & ME! (featuring Brandon Urie of Panic! At The Disco), have featured in the 9pm Family Fireworks of Sydney New Year’s Eve 2010, 2015 & 2019 respectively.
No doubt Taylor Swift’s Eras tour is an important entertainment milestone in Sydney & global musical pop culture history with long queues already snaking their way through Sydney Olympic Park for the pre-concert merchandise stalls yesterday & today. Sydney Spectaculars will keep an eye on future concert tours from any artist at Stadium Australia to see if they meet the requirement for a Sydney stadium or railway station illumination & if Taylor Swift return for another tour, whether the Lavender Haze illumination will be upgraded to the Sydney Opera House.
These kinds of events are a huge test for our public transport network & I want to thank Swifties in advance for their patience and understanding and our frontline staff for their massive efforts.
Jo Haylen, NSW Transport Minister
Sydney Spectaculars 
You must be logged in to post a comment.