STORY: Over 100,000 expected to attend Australia's biggest car festival in Canberra
SHOOTING TIME: Jan. 2, 2025
DATELINE: Jan. 2, 2025
LENGTH: 00:03:09
LOCATION: Canberra
CATEGORY: SOCIETY

SHOTLIST:
1. various of the specialist cars on the road
2. various of the specialist cars parked on the street
3. various of Australians coming to join the specialist car festival

STORYLINE:

The 37th edition of Summernats, Australia's biggest specialist car festival, began in Canberra on Thursday with more than 500 cars participating in the traditional city cruise, drawing thousands of onlookers.
   
About 130,000 people are expected to attend the four-day festival at Exhibition Park in Canberra, where over 2,000 cars are set to be on display.
   
Summernats co-owner Andy Lopez told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) that the vehicles registered for the 2025 festival have a combined value exceeding 70 million Australian dollars (43.5 million U.S. dollars).
   
"Every car tells a story, every car means something to the people who built it," he said.
   
He said that the festival generates 40 million AUD (24.8 million USD) every year for the economy of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT).
   
Organizers have promised the 2025 event will be safe and well-managed after the 2024 festival was marred by a major brawl involving security guards and members of the public.
   
Lopez said that the festival has changed security contractors for 2025.
   
ACT Policing has told attendees to expect an increased police presence around Canberra during the festival.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Canberra.
(XHTV)