PARK CITY, Utah — It's been three years since the Sundance Film Festival was able to operate at full capacity due to COVID-19 and as one of the most anticipated events in Utah kicks off, officials have a few safety reminders for guests.
Thousands of people will be flocking to the Park City area to participate in the festival, which means transportation could get tricky.
Officials recommend using mass transit as much as possible.
"We have a couple more places to park free and then at that point, you can actually ride transit there," explained Lt. Jay Randall with the Park City Police Department. "We've got some dedicated bus lanes now, which we haven't had in the past. So when traffic is kind of piling up and everybody's waiting to get into town, they can hop on the bus and bypass most of that."
The festival means all hands on deck for the relatively small police department. Officers will have a large presence as festivities commence and have zero tolerance for parking infractions and impaired driving.
"The most important thing is safety," Randall said. "Yours and everybody else's and know that we're paying attention to that stuff….That's what we have to do to keep people safe."
As there could be a record number of people who attend this year's festival, Randall says their goal is to make the experience as pleasant as possible for all guests.
"There's no better people watching anywhere in the world," he said. "But at the same time, when you come, be patient. Understand it's going to take time to get in and out and the more you can stay out of town with your vehicle the better off you're going to be and everybody else."
Randall says as long as everyone packs their patience and follows the rules, it'll make for a memorable event for everyone.
