I WAS pleased to read in the Oxford Mail about the success of BBC Countryfile Live at Blenheim Palace.

However, like many others, I was very disappointed about the lack of traffic management to the park on the Sunday morning.

I had travelled down from Scotland to attend the event and after staying in Warwick on Saturday night made the journey from there to Blenheim on Sunday morning. For a journey which should have taken 40 minutes, it took over three hours to get to the car park at the event. Like many others I had read press reports about the delays experienced travelling to the event on Thursday but was reassured that these issues had been rectified.

On travelling south on the M40 the overhead gantry sign informed us to leave at Junction 11 to Banbury and follow the signs to the event. It took us on minor roads through a number of small village.

When we finally got to the A44 we queued for two hours from joining the road until we got to the main parking area in the Palace. I was very surprised that until we got to the parking area we did not see any parking attendants or police managing the parking.

Although undoubtedly many businesses in the area benefited from the event I also feel very sorry for the four days of travel misery many locals must have experienced because of it.

I understand that over the years the Palace has hosted a number of large outdoor events and I would have thought learning from those events could have informed the Countryfile event.

If Blenheim is to hold the event in the future can I suggest it is only open to advance ticketholders similar to the BBC Gardener’s World Live, so as to minimalise traffic delays and overcrowding.

JOHN GALILEE
North Berwick, East Lothian