Plan your journey during August Bank Holiday

To help everyone enjoy the weekend and to reduce delays, Portsmouth City Council is asking residents and people attending the festival to plan journeys in advance, ideally by walking, cycling, riding rental e-scooters and e-bikes, or catching the bus or train.

The August Bank Holiday weekend tends to be a busy one in Portsmouth, both for people living in or visiting attractions in the city, as well as those going to the festival. Instead of driving into Portsmouth, people can try Portsmouth Park and Ride from junction 1 of the M275 at Tipner, with regular buses travelling to the city centre, Hard Interchange and seafront throughout the days.

The last PR3 route Park and Ride bus departs from Clarence Pier at 7.24pm. The last bus to depart city centre (PR1) is at 7.07pm on Saturday and 6.05pm on Sunday and Monday.  The last PR1 bus from The Hard is 7.15pm Saturday and 6pm Sunday and Monday. The Park & Ride car park closes at 8pm.

As part of their greener travel strategy, festival organisers are making every effort to reduce emissions from travel to the site and are therefore not providing an onsite car park. Instead, they have introduced a dedicated festival park and ride service running from Lakeside North Harbour, which will transport festivalgoers to and from Clarence Pier.

Buses, ferries and trains will run regularly from all nearby stations, including the Xelabus X27 festival service from The Hard Interchange. People travelling to the festival from outside Portsmouth can also book a coach trip with National Express.

Voi rental e-scooters are available to ride until 10pm, and e-bikes will remain available 24/7 as usual.  Following the popularity of Voi’s rental scheme to travel to the festival last year, additional rental parking is being made available by the Clarence Pier bus stops, at Southsea Terrace, Palmerston Road opposite Avenue de Caen, Seafront Clarence Esplanade and St Helens Parade. Rental e-scooter and e-bike racks within the festival site will be removed and deactivated, including those at Seafront the Esplanade Car Park by Clarence Pier, Avenue de Caen, Clarence Esplanade opposite The D-Day Story, and Jack Cockerill Way.

The Council is working with organisers and police to close some roads around the festival site to ensure the area is safe for people attending the festival or setting up and taking down infrastructure. Vehicle movement will also be limited around the area.

These closures are in addition to the road and footpath closures currently in place on Clarence Esplanade between Hovertravel and Blue Reef Aquarium to accommodate the construction of the new sea defences.  

Parking will be reduced as some roads will be part of the festival site, and others will be used for temporary taxi ranks and bus stops for the festival shuttle buses. Drivers who park near the festival site should check temporary signs to make sure they are not parking in prohibited areas where vehicles could be removed.

Caravans and motorhomes are restricted from parking overnight in the seafront area between midnight and 8am. All streets/roads where the restrictions are in place have appropriate signage. If you park in a restricted area during these hours, you may receive a £70 Penalty Charge Notice.

Cllr Steve Pitt, Leader of Portsmouth City Council, said: “Victorious Festival and the bank holiday weekend always bring a vibrant energy to Portsmouth. We’re grateful for everyone’s patience during road closures and additional pressures on the travel network.

 "I’m confident the festival will once again be a brilliant celebration enjoyed by tens of thousands of residents and visitors alike. With a little planning and a few small changes—like walking, cycling, taking the bus, or using an e-scooter—we can all help to keep everyone moving smoothly.”

Festivalgoers can check out the Victorious Festival travel information on the event website Visit the Travel Portsmouth  website for full details of all parking restrictions and road closures.