This year’s NY celebrations in London will make history, by becoming a paid for event and strictly ticketed for the first time.
According to the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, around 500,000 people turned up to hear the bongs of Big Ben at the stroke of midnight this year putting tremendous stresses on services including police and transport.
Mayor Johnson announced today that the famous event by Southbank will now be ticketed to limit the numbers to 100,000. The public will be able to book up to four tickets.
For £10 you will be guaranteed a good view of the celebrations and a ‘better visitor experience.’
Tickets will be available from Friday 26th September. According to a statement from the Mayor’s office ‘Ticketing is not for profit – every penny of the £10 administration fee will be used to pay for the ticketing itself, and the extra infrastructure the decision to ticket will bring.’
The Mayor of London Boris Johnson said: ‘London’s New Year’s Eve fireworks are phenomenally popular, not just in the capital, but across the world and we want to ensure it continues to be a safe, enjoyable and sustainable event for the long-term. After consulting with our partners, we are introducing ticketing to help manage crowd numbers and create a better experience on the night. For anyone without a ticket the fireworks are again being shown live and in full on television, meaning you can watch it in glorious HD colour without missing a single second. And don’t forget, there are hundreds of other New Year’s Eve celebrations to enjoy in bars, restaurants and clubs across the capital.’
The Mayor’s decision has the full support of the emergency services, the relevant local authorities and other key stakeholders.
To book tickets visit: http://www.london.gov.uk
London isn’t the only city to charge for its celebrations. Ticketing the Edinburgh Hogmanay celebrations has led to a steady reduction in crowd numbers to more manageable levels. There is a £20 administration charge. In Sydney, Australia ticketing is in place for the prime viewing areas, including Sydney Opera House, Royal Botanic Garden & Domain Trust, Taronga Zoo and National Parks & Wildlife Services, however the wide and harbour location event footprint makes the Sydney celebrations a different operation to London, which is much more compact.
