120,000 Head To Portsmouth's Victorious Festival

25 August 2017, 06:35

At least 120,000 people will head to an extended Victorious Festival in Portsmouth from today.

It's starting on a Friday for the first time, with Madness headlining on Southsea Common. Rita Ora and Olly Murs are on stage over the weekend.

Portsmouth City Council is advising visitors to plan their journey and use public transport, the park and ride service, ride a bike or walk to the festival site in order to avoid the expected delays caused by extra traffic on the roads. Visitors travelling to the Victorious Festival are being encouraged to use the special Victorious park and ride service from Lakeside North Harbour Car Park (PO6 3EN).

There will also be a Hayling Ferry shuttle bus service to help festival goers make use of the ferry service.

Cllr Simon Bosher, Portsmouth City Council's Cabinet Member for Traffic & Transportation, said: 

"We're looking forward to a great bank holiday weekend and I hope everyone can support that by travelling sustainably and keeping the number of cars on the roads to a minimum.

"Our traffic team will be working hard to manage traffic flow but the biggest help is to reduce the number of cars coming into the city. Hopefully visitors and residents in the north of the city going to Victorious will take advantage of the dedicated park and ride, and I would encourage residents elsewhere in the city attending the festival to walk, cycle or use public transport wherever possible."

Hampshire Police say they've been working closely with the organisers of Victorious to make sure those attending have a safe and enjoyable experience. Superintendent Annabel Berry said: 

"We want to reassure festival-goers and the community alike that we will be supporting the event organisers in hosting this event, part of that has involved collaboratively reviewing security plans in line with our protocol for pre-planned events so you may see some extra officers on patrol.

"We will be working closely with our partners at Portsmouth City Council and the event organisers to ensure disruption to the local community is kept to a minimum. This is a family event and we expect a fun, family atmosphere.

"Portsmouth will be incredibly busy this weekend so it's important to consider possible traffic or delays to journeys in and out of the city, whether you are planning to attend or not. Those attending will be expected to respect the local community when arriving at the event, during the festival and when they leave the site.

"If you are going to Victorious 2017, plan your journey to and from the site. If you're going to drive and park up in the city, ensure you have removed all your valuables from your vehicle. If you are planning to cycle, ensure you use a D-lock to secure your bike.

"We would like to remind those attending the dangers of both controlled drugs and psychoactive substances. Drug use will not be tolerated at Victorious 2017. Even just dabbling in controlled drugs and psychoactive substances can have catastrophic and fatal consequences.

"We hope this will be a safe, fun event. Officers will patrol on site during the festival and can provide assistance if required. If you see anything or anyone suspicious, approach an officer or call 101."