Austin City Limits Festival gets going

AUSTIN (KXAN) - Seventy thousand people a day will grace the great lawn of Zilker Park over the next three days for the 10th annual Austin City Limits Music Festival.

This year's event is highlighted with performances by Kayne West, Cold Play, Stevie Wonder and Arcade Fire.

Festival organizers concerned with the drought have instituted a no-smoking policy during the festival. However, the enforcement of the policy will be through the honor system.

"We are asking everyone to please follow the rules," said Lindsay Hoffman, festival marketing manager with C3. "While Zilker Park may be green, we are worried about the trail that surrounds it and how dry conditions are."

Also new are more efforts at conservation. The Nature Conservancy of Texas is sponsoring the misting stations and is hoping to educate visitors on the need to conserve water.

Additional shade areas -- 11,000 square feet -- have been added near the food section of the park, and more composting stations will be utilized. 

"All of the plates and silverware used during the festival can all be composted," said Hoffman.

Three-day passes for the festival are sold out, but Sunday day passes are still available.

Parking for the festival will not be allowed on the frontage road of MoPac. Overnight on Thursday, crews put up barricades to prevent drivers from parking in that location.