Festival goers travelling to this weekend’s Electric Picnic in Co. Laois have been advised to leave as early as possible and give themselves extra time to travel due to major roadworks.
Over 50,000 people are expected to arrive at Stradbally, Co Laois over the weekend for the festival, which is headlined by Kendrick Lamar, The Prodigy and Massive attack.
Festival organisers have issued a statement urging fans to be aware of the usual Friday evening traffic delays but also to anticipate on-going roadworks on the M7, which may cause major congestion.
According to festival organisers there are major road works on the two main routes leading to Stradbally, on the M7 and M8 which have been causing big delays at key commuter times.
With speeds of just 60km on this stretch of the M7 and the M8 shut for a portion, there can be huge tail backs.
Elaine O’Sullivan, Deputy Editor of AA Roadwatch, has given the following says: "First and foremost, make sure you plan ahead for your journey to Electric Picnic and allow yourself plenty of time to get to the festival site.
"If you are leaving after work on Friday, keep in mind that evening rush hour delays start to pick up a little earlier and you will see increased volumes of commuter traffic from about 2:30pm onwards so factor that into your plans.
The weather for the weekend will be mainly dry and warm with a mixture of sunshine and cloud
"Festival goers will start to make their way to the site from late morning onwards on Friday, so areas closer to the site will be quite busy.
"If you are heading to the festival via N7/M7 bear in mind that reduced speed limits are in place both ways between J8 Johnstown and J11 M9 as part of ongoing works and this will slow traffic between these junctions.
"And if you’re coming from Cork, the M8 is completely closed both ways for works between J13 Mitchelstown South and J14 Fermoy North until 8pm Friday evening so you will have to divert via the Old N8."
The weather for the weekend will be mainly dry and warm with a mixture of sunshine and cloud, although there is a risk of some showers over the weekend, particularly on Sunday, so festival goers are advised to pack rain gear.
