‘12.30am and still stuck!’: Fans left trapped in car park for second night running after Pink concert in Bolton
Pink fans have again complained of being trapped in the car park until the early hours after the second of her two huge shows[1] in Bolton. On Thursday the singer played to 35,000 fans on the last of two consecutive dates at the University of Bolton[2] Stadium.
Many fans' experience of the first night was marred by the scenes after the show when hundreds of vehicles were stuck in the car park f[3]or hours. One gig-goer described it as 'total and utter chaos'.
On Thursday promoters warned of a two hour wait[4] to get out the car parks. And following the show fans again complained about the traffic getting away from the stadium, with many once again stuck until the early hours.
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However lots of gig-goers seemed to have taken heed of the complaints from Wednesday night and either parked or arranged taxi pick-ups a short walk from the stadium. Writing on Twitter Ben Handley on Twitter said: "@Pink you were truly amazing tonight, thank you! The show was out of this world! @UoBStadium @Official BWFC on the other hand an absolute shambles & disgrace, if you can’t manage these events don’t try, access to pitch area was genuinely dangerous & as for parking."
Replying to the Manchester Evening News on Twitter Rob said: "And the same again for the 2nd night! 12.30am and still stuck in Tesco car park! Traffic situation is chaos!!!"
Stephen tweeted: "Why do they bother? Been like that for decades, was just as bad when Oasis played there, only difference we didn't have social media to go n complain, just sat in the car n waited."
On Thursday, stadium bosses vowed to take steps to stop a repeat of the previous first night's chaos. A spokesperson for the University of Bolton Stadium said: "Following an incredible opening night of Pink's sensational Summer Carnival Tour 2023, at which we welcomed over 35,000 people to the University of Bolton Stadium, we are aware that some concert-goers experienced traffic and congestion issues when departing the site.
Pink onstage at the University of Bolton Stadium (Image: Andy Von Pip/ZUMA Press Wire/REX/Shutterstock)
"Working closely with the relevant authorities, we are reviewing the traffic management plan in place ahead of this evening's show, with a view to mitigating these issues and improving the experience for all those visiting the stadium for tonight's second concert."
And it seems many fans had no problems getting home after Thursday's concert. Carol Fern said: "Home quicker than we got there!
"Parked 15 mins walk from stadium and took A roads back to m61/m60. And Pink was awesome as usual."
Drivers stuck in the car park after the first show (Image: Staff)
Cheryl O'Rourke tweeted: "I left at 12:30am walked to the car park. 10 minutes to get out and the diversion to the M61 worked perfectly. I was home near Southport at 1:45am."
Writing on the Bolton Evening News Facebook page Jo Camm said: "Seemed much better tonite, we were back to car and back home to Preston by 12:30. Was expecting a 2am time after reading last night's report."
The University of Bolton Stadium has been contacted for a comment.
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