AUSTIN, Texas — The countdown is on. The 2022 Austin City Limits Music Festival is just three weekends away and the city is gearing up. Zilker Park is closed beginning Monday, Sept. 26 in preparation for the festival that will kick off its first weekend Oct. 7-9. Festival setup, which includes safety fencing, began at 7 a.m. on Monday.

There will be several street closures around Zilker Park as the festival begins to bring in crowds of people. Check here to stay up to date on impacts to traffic and driving.

To make traveling to ACL more efficient for festivalgoers and traffic in general, ACL has a free shuttle that boards at Republic Square Park and will drop riders off at the festival entrance. Riders can also take the shuttle back downtown.

Public transportation will also be available throughout the two festival weekends. MetroRapid 803 is recommended as the best route to go directly to ACL. If you are using a shared scooter or bike to get to the festival, park it in one the designated areas before entering the grounds. There will be no parking at Zilker Park or in the surrounding neighborhoods. Parking illegally or on the grass may result in large fines.

Barton Springs Pool will remain open during this time. If you are using ride-share apps, pickup and drop-off locations will be near MoPac at Veterans Drive, Lee Barton Drive and Wallywood Drive.

Festival attendees are encouraged to bring a refillable water bottle and wear clothes, shoes and hats that are weather appropriate. No glass, Styrofoam or outside alcohol are allowed on the grounds. Smoking and vaping is not allowed as well. Swimming in Lady Bird Lake is also prohibited.

During the festival, Austin Police Department will conduct a No Refusal Initiative. This initiative serves as an effort to enforce DWI laws. The No Refusal Initiative will be in place starting Oct. 6 through Oct. 16, and will run daily from 9:30 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. You can use APD's online reporting site or Austin 3-1-1 (non-emergency) to report theft, and be sure to utilize the ACL Fest lost and found site to report or attempt to locate a lost cell phone.

During the festival, remember to give the right of way to emergency vehicles, be aware of the large number of pedestrians on and around the roadways and dispose of smoking materials safely. The Austin Fire Department will be onsite to ensure all fire laws are maintained.

Austin Public Health advises people should remain at home if they feel sick. APH also recommends limiting close contact to only people that you know.

The City of Austin will use Twitter and Facebook to communicate information to the public. The Austin Police Department, Austin-Travis County EMS, Austin Fire Department and Austin Emergency Management will also use their Twitter feeds for any time sensitive notifications.

Austin City Limits will use Twitter, Facebook Instagram, their website, and their mobile app to share information with festival attendees.

Always remember to dial 911 in case of emergencies and 311 for non-emergency situations.