Commemorations: Budapest traffic to change fundamentally this weekend

Budapest’s traffic will fundamentally change this weekend because of the commemorations and celebrations organised for the outbreak of the 1956 anti-Soviet Hungarian revolution. The events take place in multiple venues in Budapest. Here is what you should know and how you should plan the next two days regarding traffic.

On Saturday afternoon, there will be a torchlight procession starting from the Budapest University of Technology and Economics and finishing at József Bem Square. The event will commemorate the 22 October 1956 procession of the university youth against the terror of the Hungarian Communist state and in solidarity with the Polish demonstrators struggling for the same goals during the “Polish October”. On Sunday morning, there will be an official celebration at Kossuth Square. In the afternoon, there will be a demonstration between the Kálvin Square and the Műegyetem Wharf.

The Saturday procession will follow the route of the Műegyetem-Műegyetem rakpart-Szent Gellért tér-Szent Gellért rakpart-Döbrentei tér-Várkert rakpart-Ybl Miklós tér-Lánchíd utca-Clark Ádám tér-Fő utca-Jégverem utca-Bem rakpart-Csalogány utca-Nagy Imre tér-Fő utca-Bem József tér. Therefore, traffic will be limited between 4 pm and 5.20 pm. Moreover, József Bem Square will be closed to traffic between 5.20 pm and 7 pm.

As a result, trams nr 56A will commute between 4 pm and 4.40 pm on Alkotás Street and Villányi Street halting at the stops of tram nr 61. Trams nr 19 and 41 will commute only between South Buda – Szent Gellért Square and the Bécsi út/Vörösvári – Batthány Square, depending on the closures.

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Trams nr 48 and 49 will only commute on the Buda side, and their final stop will be the Szent Gellért Square, while buses nr 7 and 133E will go on the Szabadság Bridge and the Múzeum Boulevard.

Bus nr 105 will not stop at the Clark Ádám Square and the Várkert Bazár stations and will go on Attila Street and Krisztina Boulevard. Buses nr 11 and 111 will touch Széll Kálmán Square instead of Batthány Square. Meanwhile, bus nr 39 will go to Fazekas Street instead of Batthány Square.

During the closure of the Bem József Square (5-7 pm), trams nr 19 and 41 will commute on the Margit Boulevard-Széll Kálmán Square-Krisztina Boulevard route. It will halt at the stops of tram nr 17 and 56A. Bus nr 109’s final stop will be the Margaret Bridge instead of the Batthány Square.

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On Sunday morning, a ceremonial flag raising will take place on Kossuth Square, near the Parliament. Therefore, trams nr 2, 2B and 2M will commute only until the square.

In the afternoon, there will be a march on the Kálvin tér-Vámház körút-Fővám tér-Szabadság híd-Szent Gellért tér-Műegyetem rakpart route. The Budapest Transport Centre suggests everybody should use the metros and the trams instead of the buses. The M4 metro will commute more frequently this Sunday.

Between 4 pm and 5.30 pm, the Vámház Boulevard, the Fővám Square and the Szabadság Bridge will be closed. Therefore, trams nr 48 and 49, bus nr 15 and 115, and trolley bus nr 83M will not enter that area. Provided the crowd reaches a critical size, metro replacement bus M3 will stop at Astoria. Meanwhile, bus nr 9 and trolley bus nr 72M will only commute to Kálvin Square. Furthermore, airport bus 100E will stop also at Kálvin Square instead of Deák Ferenc Square.

Metro line M3 will follow its workday schedule on Saturday and Sunday and will not stop at Nagyvárad Square. Furthermore, between Kálvin Square and the Árpád Göncz City Centre, you may use the metro replacement bus.

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Source: MTI