Moncton readies to welcome the Eagles

Officials and concertgoers are preparing for the Eagles to land on Magnetic Hill on Saturday.

The country-rock veterans will headline the 2008 Magnetic Hill Music Festival in Moncton, which will also feature John Fogerty,KT Tunstall and the Sam Roberts Band.

Permanent washrooms, backstage trailers and 10 sound towers have been set up on the site.

The city is piping water to the site to ensure a fresh supply for thirsty fans and more food options will be available so people can get refreshments. Concertgoers are barred from bringing their own food.

The new features are part of an effort to overhaul the concert site since the Rolling Stones played in 2005.

Organizers said they've also made changes to avoid the traffic nightmare that followed theStones concert when fans tried to leave the site.

There will be no parking on city property during the Aug. 2 concert.

Transportation options

Concertgoers will havethe option of cyclingto a new bike compound on site or paying $7.50 for a roundtrip shuttle service on Codiac Transit.

"Every single bus on a regular route will get you to the concert site through transfer stations," said city spokeswoman Jill Somers. "So you can basically get on a bus outside your front door and end up at the Magnetic Hill concert site."

An online carpooling service called Pickup Pal has also been set up to co-ordinate concertgoers still looking to get to the site in their vehicles.

The service, which can be accessed through the Magnetic Hill website, matches concertgoers from the same region and then allows them to print out a coded ticket. When the ticket is brought to the concert site, the vehicle will be allowed to park in one of the 500 spots for $10.

More than 50,000 fans are expected to attend the concert.

Beefed up security

Ian Fowler, Moncton's director of community services, said the concert is anticipated tobe the largest on the Eagles' tour.

Several hotels in the city are booked solid and enterprising residentshave been advertising rooms and couches on websites. So have babysitters looking to care for the kids of parents goingto the concert.

The RCMP will be beefing up their presence at the showand has established two temporary detachments nearby.

Police will be managing traffic approaching the site and watching as people go through the gates.

Private security firm Expert Security will be responsible for guarding the concert site.

Owner Edgar Leblanc did not disclose how many guards will be onsite on Saturday but said more than 300 guards were onsite during the Rolling Stones concert.

Approximately 20 security guards will also be assigned to nearby businesses, Leblanc said.

The Eagles played three shows in Toronto last month.