Press release

Drivers advised to plan ahead of the Great Yorkshire Show

Drivers are advised to plan ahead and allow extra time if travelling to and around Harrogate next week ahead of the Great Yorkshire Show.

This news article was withdrawn on

This press release is no longer current.

More than 130,000 people are expected to head for the showground on the edge of Harrogate from Tuesday 11 to Thursday 13 July.

Andrew Charnick, Emergency Planning Officer for Highways England in Yorkshire, said:

About 130,000 people are expected to attend over the course of the three days and while we at Highways England do all we can to alleviate congestion on the major routes to the event and keep traffic flowing, obviously it will be busier than normal in this area.

We work very closely with partners including the police to ensure people travelling to events can get around as smoothly as possible. We are advising road users to plan their journeys into Harrogate next week – that might mean a simple check for congestion before leaving the house, delaying their journeys or even opting for a different mode of transport on the day.

We have a lot of experience of handling events like this and have tried and tested systems in place. We work with our emergency service colleagues to ensure those heading for the event get there with minimum fuss and delays.

Motorists not planning to attend the show should plan ahead and leave extra time, and check our twitter feeds and website for the latest information to ease their journeys over that weekend.

Drivers can check travel conditions before setting out on journeys. Highways England provides live traffic information via its website at www.trafficengland.com, local and national radio travel bulletins, electronic road signs and mobile apps.

Information is also available from Twitter as well as services in other regions and on our traffic information page.

General enquiries

Members of the public should contact the Highways England customer contact centre on 0300 123 5000.

Media enquiries

Journalists should contact the Highways England press office on 0844 693 1448 and use the menu to speak to the most appropriate press officer.

Published 6 July 2017