Parking & Transit
Ride the bus or light rail:
FREE Bus Service
Ride the bus for FREE in Tempe on July 4th. Most Tempe bus routes will serve the Mill Avenue District until 8 p.m. with return service until midnight. Many downtown Tempe bus and Orbit routes will drop off and pick up at the Tempe Transportation Center on the northeast corner of Fifth Street and Forest Avenue. Due to street restrictions, several downtown Tempe routes will be detoured to connect with light rail and will not serve their normal stops. If you choose to take the bus and transfer to light rail, you will be required to pay a fare. Parking is available at the following park-and-ride locations:
- Tempe Marketplace – Route 62 (Hardy/Guadalupe) to downtown and Route 81 (McClintock) to Apache and McClintock light rail station. Or take a special shuttle to the event from this location.
- Tempe Sports Complex – Route 65 (Mill/Kyrene) to downtown.
- Tempe Library Complex – Orbit Jupiter to downtown or take a special shuttle to the event from this location.
- Arizona Mills Mall – Take a special shuttle to the event from this location.
METRO Light Rail Service
Park for free at one of the designated METRO light rail park-and-ride locations and ride the train for $1.75 per trip, per person. You may want to purchase an all-day pass for $3.50 at the start of your trip to avoid having to use busy fare vending machines in the downtown area at the end of the event. (Reduced all-day passes are available for $1.75 for youth, people age 65 and older and people with disabilities.) Check www.MetroLightRail.org or call 602-253-5000 for hours and frequencies. Park-and-ride locations include:
- Apache Boulevard and Price Road
- Apache Boulevard and McClintock Drive
- Apache Boulevard and Dorsey Lane
Free Youth Transit Passes
Tempe provides free youth transit passes for all Tempe residents age 6 to 18. For more information on how to obtain a free youth transit pass, visit www.tempe.gov/tim or call 480-858-2350.
Parking for the event:
Because of high attendance, plan to arrive early and leave late for the best parking. Event patrons are encouraged to consider these parking suggestions:
- ADA parking is available at the US Airways Garage.
- For street closures, visit www.Tempe.gov/streetclosures.
- Utilize the parking lots on the outer areas of the event, via Priest Drive and Rural Road to minimize delays and traffic congestion.
- Patrons traveling from the west should park at the lot located at Rio Salado Parkway and Hardy Drive.
- Patrons traveling from the east should park at the ASU lots near Rural Road and Rio Salado Parkway.
- There are several thousand parking spaces in the Mill Avenue District. However, extra time may be needed due to the popularity of the area and the event traffic plans. Visit www.tempe.gov/parking
- Avoid parking on the north bank. The Mill Ave. bridges will be closed to vehicle and pedestrian traffic. Patrons who park on the north bank of the lake will NOT be able to walk across the Mill Ave. bridges to attend the event.
- Check the traffic and parking situations prior to attending.
- Expect some delays after the event. Your patience is appreciated.
For a parking map, please visit www.tempe.gov/parking.
