Traffic chaos hits Cereals…again

TRAFFIC CHAOS has once again blighted the Cereals Event as visitors, exhibitors and even junior DEFRA minister Lord Whitty were forced to queue for hours to get onto the site. 

Event organiser, the Royal Agricultural Society of England, blamed Lincolnshire police for the problems at Leadenham Hall, nr Sleaford, Lincs.

“We‘ve responded to problems from previous years, with better access to car parks and sign-posting, so we‘re very frustrated Lincs police failed to get involved,” a spokesperson said.

“They‘ve now apologised to us.”

Visitor numbers were 2,000 up on last year‘s record 10,000 first day attendance, with host farmer Andrew Ward having to mow off an extra 4ha(10 acres) of barley for parking.

Typical of the angry visitors was Essex farmer Guy Smith who claimed a two and three-quarter hour delay. Lord Whitty took 2 hours to travel from nearby Newark rail station.

Frances McKim of the British Crop Protection Council said she spent two hours queuing on the A17 from Newark, and another 25 minutes getting into the car park.

“What can you expect if you‘re trying to get a whole load of cars through a hole in the hedge,” commented another angry visitor.

For departure the RASE said it planned to route 4×4 vehicles down farm tracks. “We seem to have been a victim of our own success,” a spokesman commented.