Download Festival-goers hit with eight-hour long queues on A50 and M1
Download Festival organisers have apologised to ticket holders who were forced to wait up to thirteen hours in queues on the M1 and A50.
The four-day rock festival at Donington Park in Derby has been met with criticism after fans on the way to the festival were stuck in traffic for hours on end. Many have complained about the lack of parking at the site, with one person claiming it took them nine hours to find a spot.
Festival manager John Probyn has advised those who are driving to the event to only follow travel advice from Download Festival, which says drivers should not use a sat nav as it will cause delays, and to use the M1, J24 and the A50 only, not the A453.
He said: "We apologise for the delays for customers coming on site today. We have been working continuously since first reports this morning with the local authority and transport agencies to minimise these delays. We urge road users to ONLY follow the official travel advice from @downloadfest."
National Highways East Midlands warned drivers just after 1pm to expect delays of "well over an hour".
On a public Facebook group called Download Festival 2023, the mother of a festival-goer said her daughter had been on the road for 13 hours.
June Bevis commented: "My daughter has now been on the road for over 13 hours still stuck on A42."
Ticket-holder Jade Nicole Strachan said she was four minutes away from the site but had been stuck in traffic for two hours.
Another group member, Byron Gilbert, said he spent eight hours on the A50.
Another visitor, Garry Price, posted in the group: "We've just moved 0.5 miles in one hour. That is the fastest we have moved since 1pm today. Glad it's a sunny day."
