Police warned drivers to avoid the Stoneleigh area on Saturday as the Jeremy Clarkson Farm Festival brought heavy traffic to the weekend event site, and officers said they were working with organisers to keep vehicles moving. The warning remained relevant on Sunday, May 24, as the festival returned for another day and motorists were told to plan ahead where possible.
The advice came as temperatures were set to rise to 27C under a UKHSA heat health warning, adding to the bank holiday pressure on roads across Coventry and Warwickshire. At the time of writing, there were no road incidents across the area, but Inrix said holiday traffic was slowing the A4097 in both directions from M42 J9 to Coton Road for Kingsbury Water Park, while also reporting an accident on the northbound stretch from Coton Road to A51 Coventry Road. Traffic was coping well after that reported incident, although delays were still building before Coton Road and Kingsbury Water Park.
Elsewhere on Sunday, the Great British Farm Festival at Stoneleigh Park was finishing, and organisers said around 50,000 people had flocked to the inaugural event there over the weekend. Limited tickets were still available, which kept Stoneleigh firmly on the day’s traffic map alongside a separate delays warning for the Stratford Festival of Motoring in the south of the county.
The weekend was busy beyond the road network as well. Mercia car boot sale was under way at Lockhurst Lane in Foleshill, where entry cost £1 or 50p from 11.30am, and the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum was hosting a drop-in creative workshop for children aged 3 and over across May half term, including Sunday. For families, motorists and event-goers alike, the message was the same: expect congestion, leave extra time and avoid the Stoneleigh area if you can.
