Record crowds at Melbourne’s Grand Prix and comedy festival have boosted foot traffic in the CBD, with pedestrian activity in the heart of the city exceeding pre-pandemic levels by 15% over the weekend.
Melbourne CBD’s office occupancy is still lagging, with average attendance at 30%, according to March data from the Property Council. Wednesdays and Thursdays are the city’s busiest days – with over 70% of pre-pandemic foot traffic. Mondays and Fridays – the most popular days for people to work at home – continue to languish with office occupancy as low as 17%.
Lord mayor Sally Capp said pent-up demand over the past two years had “manifested itself in record crowds over the weekend”.
“The foot traffic figures show Melbourne literally was bursting on the weekend,” she said.
“The positive momentum that we’ve seen this year is really taking the next big stride forward with week-on-week foot traffic, at Southbank for example, up 66%. That tells us that that over-caution moving to Covid confidence is something that’s here to stay.”
The City of Melbourne’s pedestrian sensor on Swanston Street – in the heart of the CBD – recorded pre-pandemic levels of 115% on Saturday and Sunday. It recorded 93% on Monday and 95% on Tuesday.
The weekend’s Grand Prix – the first held after three years – drew record crowds of more than 419,000 spectators. The kick off of the AFL season last month and the Melbourne comedy festival – running throughout April – have also drawn visitors back into the city.
A department of transport spokesperson said it was great to see big events also drive higher usage of the state’s roads and public transport network.
“We continue to support all Victorians returning to the road and public transport network, whether it’s heading to the office or classroom, to the footy or a concert or to visit loved ones.”
This week the Andrews government also confirmed Victoria would host the 2026 Commonwealth Games, with most of the events at four hubs in regional parts of the state. The opening ceremony will be held at Melbourne’s MCG.
Capp said the decentralised major sporting event would still add to the city’s “positive momentum”, with Melbourne likely to be a hub for travellers, athletes and their support team.
“There is so much work to do between now and 2026. To host those games across Victoria, and Melbourne will play a central role in all of that,” she said.
“We recognise the value in building new affordable accommodation and new community infrastructure that creates a legacy from the games in the regions around Victoria. But we also know that Melbourne is a home base for both sport and events – we are the events capital of Australia.”
Victoria’s Covid cases from the Omicron subvariant are predicted to peak this month, with modelling showing a slow decline of cases in May. The state opposition has called for the close contact seven-day isolation rule to be scrapped, claiming it has plunged the state into a “semi-lockown”.
But the the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee has advised governments to scrap the requirement once the current peak of cases has passed.
Capp said she was optimistic a rise in cases would not set back the city’s momentum.
“People are working out how do we live with this? How do we work with this? How do we become flexible to be able to manage it,” she said.
The state government’s lifting of the indoor mask mandate and work-from-home recommendation from February has seen a spike in city employees returning to the CBD.
But Melbourne’s office occupancy lags behind the rest of Australia, with Adelaide leading the nation at 61%, Sydney slightly ahead at 41% and Brisbane at 48%.
The Property Council’s latest office survey showed Melbourne’s average attendance increased from 15% in February to 32% in March.
