Lessons will be learned after chaotic traffic to Goodwood Battle of Britain tribute

The ‘significant disruption’ caused to motorists on the A27 during the Battle of Britain 75th anniversary event at Goodwood has been highlighted today (October 16).
Spitfires over Goodwood on September 15.Spitfires over Goodwood on September 15.
Spitfires over Goodwood on September 15.

Last month saw a flypast of iconic aircraft that flew in the second world war including Spifires and Hurricanes and the spectacle drew crowds of around 25,000.

But at a full West Sussex County Council meeting Simon Oakley said it ‘did not appear’ measures similar to those for other Goodwood Estate events were put in place to mitigate traffic impact.

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He said the resulting traffic congestion ‘caused significant disruption to both the road network within Chichester City and the A27’, including residents’ access to St Richard’s Hospital for medical appointments.

Prince Harry at Goodwood on September 15Prince Harry at Goodwood on September 15
Prince Harry at Goodwood on September 15

Drivers faced up to two-hour delays on the day as several roads in the area were completely clogged.

“It is important to recognise this was a one-off event,” said cabinet member for highways and transport John O’Brien in response, adding a multi-agency safety advisory group (SAG) was consulted by organisers.

He claimed ‘great care’ was taken to consider the potential impacts to the area.

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“However, future discussions with the SAG will seek to learn lessons from the experiences,” he said. “Meetings of the SAG will continue to be held to plan and prepare for all future Goodwood Estate events and the Battle of Britain event will be discussed at the end of year debrief with the Goodwood Estates.”

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