Traffic management on M54 ... or lack of

[jingernut]

Well that was an absolute joke of a journey. Spent 2 hours driving to get within 3 miles of the airfield (8.20am) this morning to be confronted by a queue. No problem I thought, they'll have it under control and flowing.

Not a chance. 2h 45m later still 3/4 of a mile from Jct 3 on the M54 and no real sign of any progress.

Gave up and turned around. Absolutely ridiculous.

[MarkL]

Sorry to hear that, what a nightmare !

Seems like the demand for air shows is now out stripping the supply.

[tommo999]

Looks like Cosford has been a victim of its own success in this respect. Good to see the high demand, though.

[DerekF]

A disaster of a day. We set at 7.30am, the time we've set off for the last 5 or 6 years. We hit the traffic about 6 miles from J3 of the M54 at about 8.40am. At 9.20am we had moved less than a mile. I realized then it wasn't going well. I checked on the Cosford Air show website and it said that those without tickets wouldn't be admitted. We left the queue, drove to J4, turned around and drove back up to Cheshire. A total waste of time.
I shudder to think how many others in that queue of at least 8 miles were heading for disappointment. Either by having tickets and taking hours to get in or, like us, by not having tickets and being refused entry. There will be some seriously brassed off people tonight.

Looks like Cosford has been a victim of its own success in this respect. Good to see the high demand, though.

To some extent, I agree. but either make it all-ticket or not. You can't say that you can pay on the gate up until Saturday night then say on Sunday morning that you won't be able to get in.

[paulb1973]

A disaster of a day. We set at 7.30am, the time we've set off for the last 5 or 6 years. We hit the traffic about 6 miles from J3 of the M54 at about 8.40am. At 9.20am we had moved less than a mile. I realized then it wasn't going well. I checked on the Cosford Air show website and it said that those without tickets wouldn't be admitted. We left the queue, drove to J4, turned around and drove back up to Cheshire. A total waste of time.
I shudder to think how many others in that queue of at least 8 miles were heading for disappointment. Either by having tickets and taking hours to get in or, like us, by not having tickets and being refused entry. There will be some seriously brassed off people tonight.

Looks like Cosford has been a victim of its own success in this respect. Good to see the high demand, though.

To some extent, I agree. but either make it all-ticket or not. You can't say that you can pay on the gate up until Saturday night then say on Sunday morning that you won't be able to get in.

Perhaps they could go down the RIAT route and make it an advanced-ticket affair. Trouble is, that doesn't cure the M54 queuing - of-course people in those vehicles who are all ticket holders are likely to be even more determined to get in.

[jayh29]

Same for us...bought tickets last month, left from Surrey at 6:30am to sit in a jam 7 miles from the show. Gave up after 3 hours and moving one mile.
Gutted.

[Mr Benn]

Really feel sorry for you guys that drove and got stuck in the traffic. So glad I didnt go as that wouldve been a nightmare for me.

One of the big worries is that many folks wont bother going again. That means that a lot of kids wont go to a show, and you then lose their interest.

I have asked on here before why they dont make it a 2 day show, but the organisers said its a non-runner.

It is clear tho that some changes need to be made. And its no good everybody blaming everybody else.

[IanOlder]

Vulcan effect

[vulcan558]

Vulcan effect

Must be over 2000 car spaces on the car parks on the main base, that could be used.
the field down Neachly lane could be used. The Vulcan effect and the show being close to a major city needs more space for parking.
the Midlands is a big place.

[Luke28]

I know its no use now but in future if the situation arrises again, people are best off parking at Wolves and hopping on the train, its by far the most straight forward way of getting there.

[TYPHOON3]

Well, those Cricket and Hunt club naughty fields really killed this show, didn't they...

Both naughty fields were full to capacity,they were turning people away after a while.No problem getting on or off either.

[DeltaPapa]

It was flagged on here Friday that there could be problems. I feel for those that didn't make it through the gates.

http://forums.airshows.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=52143

[speedbird2639]

Set off from Sth Brum later than I wld normally (normally aim to be queuing when the gates open so dodge the later traffic); warning signs on M5 saying M54 jn3 back to 2 was 'congested'; later amended to jns 3 back to 1; dropped off M5 at jn 2 and drove thru Wolves; on A41 just north of Wolves hit back of queue which moved abt 0.5 miles in an hour (so queue on A41 was abt 6 miles long by 9am), ducked off the main road and down the single track back roads and managed to get to Albrighton but then I heard an announcement on the radio saying if you didnt have a ticket your only option was to abandon yr car and walk in - so as I've already seen all the displays in the Museum I found a 'naughty field' right under the flight path at the Eastern end of the runway and paid my £10 (some of which is allegedly going to the Air Ambulance) - excellent viewing though poor for photos due to angle of sun but those 'on the inside' suffer with that at Cosford anyway.

Stayed pretty much til the end; 30 secs to get off the field as opposed to the 2-2.5 hrs it wld be if I was 'inside'. Cosford will have lost a lot of goodwill with this debacle today and it may have put a lot of non aviation enthusiasts off going to an airshow again which they are always telling us are the very people they are trying to attract. If they wont/ cant move to a 2 day show then the traffic management needs to be improved. Its unrealistic to expect alterations to the base for a one day a year event so they need to do something like advance tickets only and do more to encourage people to use transport other than their car such as combined train/ admittance tickets. The first time I went to Cosford I didnt have a car and in those days (c. 1988) you cld get a combined rail and admittance ticket - train from New St and just walk into the show. Either that or off site carparking like RIAT and maybe use buses to bus people from the car parks to the show.

Shame that the traffic was such a nightmare and ruined the day for so many as the weather and the flying was excellent.

[Domvickery]

What was done differently this year? I left Birmingham at 07.30 (I live 30miles from cosford) & didnt get on base until 10.45.

I did exactly the same last year & was on base by 08.15

[steveygr]

What a nightmare, checked the Cosfrod website last night after midnight, set off early this morning on my usual route avoiding the M54, only to arrive in queue about 4 miles from the airfield on a small country road just out of Shiffnal at 9:15am. Having spent about 20mins moving just a few tens of yards a kind gent got out of his car and walked along the queue telling us that only those would tickets would be admitted. He’d heard this on radio Shropshire. The past few years I’ve gone on my own and got in without much delay but this time I had my wife and young daughter with me so a quick about turn and off to Hoo Farm for the day where I could hear some of the show which made it feel worse. However, at least we made something out of the trip.

Why can’t the organisers have fields allocated for different approach routes, preferably with some reserves for on the day tickets?

I hope those that stayed in the queue had tickets and had a great day.

[Ian G]

Went down the lanes in the afternoon, traffic still backed up on the M54, many people who were there had given up on getting in, a couple even had tickets and weren't impressed at all. I am sure cosford will say it was a successful day etc etc but traffic management seemed to be worst ever, even worse than 2010 which I recall was abysmal. The trouble is traffic bottlenecks to just the one main entrance - I know there is the western gate but that closes early doesn't it? Not quite sure how you get round this one. It's not a big enough show for a two day event - blimey, it's only just enough for a one day event! I hope people stuck in queues and thus didn't get in hadn't paid to get in the cosford club . . . . . .

[Seahornet]

What traffic? Left Bridgnorth at 9am, sat at the crowdline by 10am. Aren't bicycles wonderful....

(Can't find a 'smug *#@*@#' smiley!)

[DaveBlu]

Took advice from other members off this board and got there early, seems the difference of a meagre 10 minutes was a fantastic stroke of luck for me, sorry to see so many people were disappointed.

[speedbird2639]

For me the fairly obvious thing to do which wld improve the situ wld be to keep the runway closed at least until the show starts. Very few planes fly into the Cosford to land prior to doing their display. Pilots shd be advised they need to either land the night before or arrive during the show and fit their arrival between the display slots. That wld enable the Western gate to be used up until 12pm and greatly reduce the congestion. But even then with a combination of great weather and the Vulcan/ Red Arrows effect it was always going to be mega congested. Advance only tickets; off site car parks and tickets including train travel shd also be considered.

[Andyperkins]

Me and my Dad set off from Bristol this morning at 6:30am and hit the queue at around 8:20am and there we sat until 12:15pm when we decided to give up after having only moved a mile

[Mike]

I'm sorry to read about the continued terminal decline of British airshows, that must be the reason why nobody bothers going any more.

[Pat Murphy]

Set off from St Asaph at 6.30 with H the Lurker driving. Stopped for Brekkie at the Lil Thief at Shrewsbury services (better than it used to be ) and got to Junction 3 at around 8.15. Then the fun started. "Use Both Lanes" said the signs, so we did and as we got to the top of the slip a big yellow Cone truck blocked the exit and the roundabout to all traffic going right and up the A41 we headed for the back road in. Got to the left turn to find no marshal and cones blocking the access. Passed the turn by mistake anyway, turned round at the petrol station pulled back into the queue, which really upset a driver in a Skoda who followed us up the traffic into the turn, now right, which by now had had the cones "moved". Still no marshal so all on the A41 were heading south for J3 oblivious to the closure from Telford direction. Took the signed back road into the base and after more verbals from the Skoda man, none of which are printable, he was seriously unhappy as we had come within 5 yards of his car we arrived on field by 9am. Some, ahem, careful parking, we were 50 yards from the 3 Black Jags near the Bogs.
Had a cracking morning, especially pleased with the set up around the Harrier GR3. Well done team Got back to the car to find that where we had initially been at the end of the line on parking, we had now a couple of additional cars along side. Obviously some others had had the same idea. We watched a non-stop line of cars enter the field until 3PM!!!!! Could not believe the number of late arrivals, so I asked a few in the queue. A nice lady from Tattenhall had queued for 4hours and another Gentleman from just up the A41 had taken 5 hours to do 4 miles. We left after the Vulcan and I was back home for 6.15 for a nice meal out with Mrs I.L.L and the juniors. Top day all round. However, I hope the man in the Skoda manages to calm down a motch or two or a heart attack will surely follow.

The lack of traffic marshals at J3 on the M54 and on the A41 caused all sorts of trouble and I think most of it could have been sorted if the contractor had done their job right and had staff in the right places on the A41 and the M54. I wouldn't ask them to organise a round of drinks after todays shambles. Hope that lessons are learned.......

[parsley]

I'm sorry to read about the continued terminal decline of British airshows, that must be the reason why nobody bothers going any more.

And members of the general public who waited hours in traffic queues and didn't even make it to the base let alone get in are going to be encouraged to go to other shows by that experience ?

[Bubbles]

I left The hotel at Wolverhampton at 07:10 and was onsite, parked up by 07:40. Had no problems at all. Same when leaving, left at 17:50 and drove straight out with no issues.

[stevebrodie]

Well, those Cricket and Hunt club naughty fields really killed this show, didn't they...

Hunt fieid was 'full' by late morning, people parked in 'overflow' and walked in. cant have been fun for anyone stuck in all that traffic