More than half of the trains due to serve Glastonbury Festival this week have been cancelled because of rail strikes, it has been announced.
Tens of thousands of revellers will be forced to find alternative routes to the site of the world famous music and arts festival held at Worthy Farm in Pilton, Somerset,
Great Western Railway (GWR) is operating just five services from London Paddington to Castle Cary railway station - a 20-minute drive from the festival - on Thursday, with a total of 24 between Wednesday and Friday.
Before the industrial action was announced, 51 trains were expected to run on the route over the three-day period.
GWR told passengers: “We plan to maintain timetabled trains between Castle Cary and London Paddington throughout the course of the Glastonbury Festival.
“Some services might be subject to alterations to train times and we will be in contact with customers who have already booked seats on board those trains.”
It added: “Other parts of the GWR network are likely to be more affected by the strike action and customers may need to consider alternative ways to travel to a station serving Castle Cary.”
Rail strikes are being held across the UK on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, but their effects mean services will be disrupted from Monday night until the end of the week.
Roads serving the Glastonbury Festival are expected to be exceptionally busy, with motoring groups advising drivers to avoid the region if possible.
National Express, the official coach partner of the festival, will carry more than 30,000 music fans to and from the site but a spokeswoman warned of congestion in the surrounding area.
“Demand for coach travel is high with a significant increase in both enquiries and bookings on our scheduled network on and around the dates of the strikes, including on routes that provide travel to Glastonbury.”
“We are working hard to increase availability to meet additional demand where possible. Seats are selling fast, so the advice is to check services and book in advance.
“We do expect and are prepared to be busy but also recommend that customers allow plenty of time when planning their journey.”
Glastonbury Festival is set to return this week for the first time in three years to celebrate its 50th year, after the coronavirus pandemic forced organisers to cancel twice. Around 200,000 people are expected to attend.
In the most recently published accounts for the event, organisers reported turnover had plummeted from £45m to less than £1m following the cancellation of the event in 2020.
According to the event’s website, the 2007 Glastonbury Festival spent over £6m with local companies based within 25 miles of Worthy Farm.
Local shops, restaurants, pubs and garages also enjoy a significant increase in trade when the Festival is on.
Figures provided by the Economic Impact Survey jointly funded by Mendip District Council and Glastonbury Festival, carried out by an independent consultancy, indicate that the net value of the 2007 Festival to the Mendip economy was more than £35m.
Sir Paul McCartney, Billie Eilish and rapper Kendrick Lamar will perform on the famous Pyramid stage this year, while Diana Ross will fill the Sunday teatime legends slot.
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