eltonfan.net  
Home  |  News  |  Tour  |  Charts  |  Board  |  Archive  |  Shop  |  Links  |  FAQ  |  Contact  
 


 Search Hercules News
 
 
 ELTON JOHN NEWS 

Elton fans demand apology after traffic chaos
Tuesday, June 21 2016

Furious Elton fans have slammed event organisers after hundreds were forced to give up attending his concert at Exeter Westpoint on June 19, 2016 due to traffic chaos.

Other say they were forced to abandon their cars and walk along the hard shoulder in order to get to the gig. Elton was playing at the Exeter Westpoint arena but many fans did not arrive until half way through the gig after there was gridlock on all three lanes of the M5.

The traffic chaos occurred five miles from the main turning for the arena and other main dual carriageways. Fans blamed organisers and a lack of traffic information for the chaos. But Devon and Cornwall Police said concert times were brought forward but they and Devon Highways were not informed.

Meanwhile the 15,000 fans who managed to attend the open air concert - which was called a Wonderful Crazy Night - were soaked by the constant rain. Tom Bonard said: 'It was a disaster. They were not prepared for the event and it was really disappointing. A lot of people were disappointed.'

Andrea Tincombe took two hours to get to the M5 and do three miles before her party used their knowledge of country lanes to get into the venue - but the concert had already started because the start time had been brought forward. She said: 'It was chaos. There was no information. Vehicles were stuck on the M5 for miles and not moving.'

Nick Smith, from Exeter, said: 'People were still arriving at the venue half way through the concert. It was a total shambles. We spent £90 each on the tickets and there was parking on top - but they could not organise a drinking session in a brewery. It was the same in Plymouth at the Rod Stewart concert a week before - Devon seems incapable of hosting big concerts. And the staff in the concert stopped people dancing - they just wanted people to sit in the rain motionless. Elton John has had a go at these people before for stopping people standing and dancing. There was more atmosphere on the moon than at this gig.'

Chris Thorpe said: 'Do not ever go to a concert at Westpoint, Exeter they cannot manage it. Abandoned trying to get to see Elton John after four hours driving!'

Another fan, Amy Endacott, tweeted: 'Exeter services full of Elton fans who have given up and are turning around and heading home. #disgraceful.'

Elton began the gig early and sympathised with his soaked audience calling them 'poor b*******.' The 2.5 hour long show led to further delays as concert goers tried to battle out of the venue back to their homes.

Westpoint Exeter tweeted 'A mixture of issues have contributed to the traffic jams, including the poor weather and a number of minor accidents, which caused a knock-on effect with the sheer volume of traffic. With regards to refund requests, customers will need to contact the box office they purchased the tickets through in the morning.'

Back to Headlines


© 1997-2017 by HERCULES International. Hercules is not affiliated with Elton John`s management or the Elton John Aids Foundation.  
Please note that this site has been discontinued on March 31, 2017 and will not be updated anymore.