Drivers have been advised to allow plenty of extra time and to plan ahead as tens of thousands of people flock to Glastonbury Festival this week.
Motorways and A-roads across the South West along key routes to the festival are likely to be busy from Wednesday, June 22 to Friday, June 24, as people make their way to Worthy Farm. While festival traffic tends to avoid Pilton - five miles away from Glastonbury - the A39 has been heavily congested by mid-morning on the Wednesday in previous years.
Drivers have been advised traffic is likely to reach its peak on Wednesday, particularly around junctions 25 and 23 of the M5. The primary motorway route for festival traffic to the site is the M5, with drivers exiting at junction 23 to take the A39 and A361, and the A303-A37 is also used for traffic arriving from London, with the A303 eastbound expected to be particularly busy from Podimore Roundabout.
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With this in mind, it's probably best for festival-goers from Bristol to avoid the M5 when travelling to Worthy Farm. The other main route is along the A37, which runs through Pensford and Shepton Mallet. There are likely to be delays on this A-road too, but it should be faster than the motorway.
If it becomes too jammed on the A37, you can always divert to the A39 which will take your through Wells and then turn onto the A371.
John Ingram, National Highways Emergency Planner for the South West, said: “We’re reminding road users to plan ahead for Glastonbury – around 200,000 people are expected to attend this year’s festival and roads leading to the event are likely to be very busy.
“Our aim is to keep the National Highways network running while keeping festival goers and other road users safe and informed. We advise people to check our traffic and travel information channels, but whatever your journey, we advise people to set off early and allow plenty of time.
“And with temperatures expected to remain warm through the week, we’d also advise pre-checking your vehicles for oil, fuel and coolant levels and correctly inflated tyres, also to ensure you have plenty of drinking water with you to stay hydrated.”
Increased levels of traffic are also expected on Monday, June 27 as people leave the festival site. Congestion is expected to be heavier than usual due to the national rail strike this week which will see services severely reduced on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, with a knock-on impact on other days.
Festival-goers travelling to the site by rail have been told to plan their journeys in advance as more than half of the trains along the route have been cancelled. While the routes between London Paddington and Castle Cary are being affected, there will be a reduced service even on non-strike stays, according to Great Western Rail.
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