KXAN maps you through F1 traffic

AUSTIN (KXAN) - The first bit of advice to those heading out to the track: Don't try to drive to the track unless you have a parking pass for one of the four on-site parking lots.

• You can also get there by chopper
• Your F1 Headquarters

Still, those passes have been sold out for quite some time.

Ways to drive there

• Most drivers will try U.S. 71 or State Highway 130 down to FM 812.
• FM 973 is an alternative from 969 or Decker Lane.
• And you can connect from several East Austin arteries to Burleson Road, which takes you over to the north side of the track.
• Farther south, drivers can come up U.S. Highway 21 to FM 812.

Some lanes along these routes will be blocked for emergency access and may be jammed with shuttle buses as well.

Shuttle pick-up sites

• Ticketholders will be assigned either the Travis County Expo Center or the downtown garage at 15th and Trinity streets.
• The shuttles will travel east on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and down SH 130 from the north.

Thought about bicycling on over?

The weather should be cool, so a bike ride might be the way to go.

It starts with the trail on the north side of Lady Bird Lake.

You can use it to cross under Interstate 35 and head down the frontage road to Riverside and Lakeshore drives.

Then, pick up the bike lanes on Pleasant Valley Road south to Burleson Road.

That will take you east, all the way to Richard Moya Park by the airport, where you can park your bike in a secure place and hop on a free shuttle to the track.

After the events at the track, a bicycle or bus will be your best friend.

Fan Fest road closures

Streets will be shut down in Downtown Austin for Fan Fest.

Along with the normal Sixth Street closures, the entire Warehouse District will be blocked off: Second to Fourth streets and Lavaca to Brazos streets.

But Capital Metro is running a free downtown loop, Friday through Sunday, 7 a.m to 2:30 a.m.

They said the buses will run every 15 minutes and circle 15th street, down San Jacinto, and Red River, then back west on Cesar Chavez and up Lavaca streets.

Need help sorting all that out?

Capital Metro has a new, free mobile app.

It also allows you to use your smartphone as your bus or MetroRail pass -- even beyond F1 weekend through Thanksgiving!

And by the way, CapMetro is expanding MetroRail service for race weekend as well.

You can also check out real-time traffic.