North Tidewater News

The Grand Illumination Parade will make its return to Downtown Norfolk on Saturday, November 23. Hampton Roads Transit (HRT) is offering special $4 roundtrip fare passes for attendees using the Tide light rail and Elizabeth River Ferry services. Children under 17 can travel for free when accompanied by a paying adult.

These passes are available for purchase in advance through Ticketleap at gohrt.com/gi until November 23. The pass is only valid for travel on the day of the parade.

To accommodate those attending the parade, both the light rail and ferry services will increase their frequency. Starting at 10 a.m., the Elizabeth River Ferry will run every 30 minutes between Waterside in Norfolk and High Street and North Landing in Portsmouth. From 4 p.m., this frequency will increase to every 15 minutes, with the last ferry departing Waterside at 11:45 p.m.

The Tide Light Rail will operate every 10 minutes from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m., or one hour after the parade ends. After that, it will run every 30 minutes until service concludes at 11:30 p.m., with final departures from EVMC/Fort Norfolk and Newtown Road stations at 11 p.m. The Harbor Park Light Rail Station will not be serviced between 5 and 9 p.m.

To manage potential overflow, HRT plans to operate five shuttle buses near MacArthur Station on City Hall Avenue post-parade. These shuttles will transport passengers directly to Newtown Road Station, with an additional shuttle bus stationed at Civic Plaza for extra capacity.

Due to traffic restrictions during the event, regular bus service downtown will be suspended.

For those driving to use light rail services, free parking is available at Newtown Road Station, Military Highway Station, Ballentine Broad/Creek Station, and EVMC/Fort Norfolk Station.

Further details regarding parade passes, operation hours, or parking can be found at www.gohrt.com.