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‘Utter carnage’ across Manchester as thousands try to get home after Parklife and other gigs
Many people were forced to spend over £50 on taxis home while others faced lengthy waits for trams and buses
Manchester descended into chaos over the weekend as thousands of concert-goers attempted to get home after Parklife and other gigs happening across the city.
Saturday night (June 11th) was one of the busiest nights Manchester had experienced since the pandemic, with Parklife Festival taking place at Heaton Park, The Killers at Old Trafford, Ed Sheeran at the Etihad and Alicia Keys at the AO Arena.
Thousands of concert-goers left the venues at similar times, resulting in chaotic and very expensive journeys home.
Emma Davidson, twenty-four, went to Parklife with her sister and boyfriend on Saturday, but described getting home as ‘utter carnage’, adding that she had to pay more than £50 for a taxi home.
She told Proper Manchester: “Getting home after Parklife was utter carnage. We ended up spending £50 on a taxi that would usually cost us no more than £10, and that was also after walking around half an hour away from the festival grounds.
“It needs to be organised better in the future, maybe with staggered exit times or more shuttle buses back to the city centre, so that they’re less crowded.”
And Emma wasn’t the only festival-goer facing surging taxi prices over the weekend, with one person on Twitter claiming their short journey from Heaton Park to Cheers Bar in Prestwich had risen from its usual fare of £5.69 to £35.
People attempting to get the Metrolink home also faced long waits and queues, with a number of services reportedly being severely delayed or even cancelled at the last minute.
Social media user Julie Marie wrote on Facebook: “We were caught up in the chaos leaving the Ed Sheeran gig last night [Saturday]. We did the recommended option and used the Park & Ride at Ashton, which was a breeze going, but then had to wait two hours for a tram to get back afterwards.
“Trams coming from Manchester were either delayed or already packed with people heading home from the other events. It was actually quicker going the other way into Manchester! Absolute carnage!”
Metrolink services operated on ‘extended running hours’ over the weekend, with extra capacity added on the Bury and Altrincham lines.
TfGM said it worked with operators and partner agencies across the weekend to boost services as much as possible to help people keep moving.