Travel advice as Bruce Springsteen gig will see 45,000 fans at Sunderland's Stadium of Light
Travel advice has been issue for the Bruce Springsteen gig on Wednesday, May 22, which will see 45,000 make their way to Sunderland's Stadium of Light. Concert-goers are being advised to plan their journeys in advance and give themselves plenty of time to get there.
This is Springsteen's second visit to Sunderland after he last played at the Stadium of Light with the E Street Band during his Wrecking Ball Tour in 2012. As a result, public transport and North East roads are expected to be especially busy.
Key partners including Sunderland City Council, Sunderland AFC and Nexus have well rehearsed event travel and transport plans in place to help make journeys to and from the stadium as stress free as possible. This includes a traffic management system to avoid over congestion on public transport and the roads.
Travelling by Metro and bus
On their way to the concert, people are being advised to use all the city's train stations, but after the concert, only St Peters and Stadium of Light train stations will be open for travellers heading northbound towards Newcastle.
Concert-goers can save time by buying Metro tickets in advance, and Sunderland Central and Park Lane Stations will be closed to passengers from 10pm with trains passing through but not stopping.
Travelling by car and parking
The best routes into the city for motorists will be well signposted with temporary traffic signs. Traffic restrictions will be in place with roads around the stadium closed to all traffic on the day. Road maps for the concerts and live updates are available on the traffic monitoring site: www.one.network.
Non concert goers should also be aware that routes heading into and out of Sunderland are likely to be extremely busy that day.
There is no public parking available at the Stadium of Light or in nearby residential streets. People planning to travel to concert by car are being advised to use city centre car parks found at this link: www.sunderland.gov.uk/parking.
Pre-bookable parking is also available at the Riverside Sunderland Multi Story Car Park in Farringdon Row for a flat fee of £7 for 24 hours. Book via Sunderland City Council Parking Portal (sunderlandparking.co.uk) Then click on the Event Parking tab. This car park will not be available for pay on the day parking.
Limited disabled parking at the Stadium of Light can be pre-allocated by contacting the Stadium of Light.
Park and Walk
The event's main park and walk site is at Sunderland Enterprise Park on the north side of the River Wear adjacent to A1231 Wessington Way (20-30 minutes walk), with a signposted route along a footpath/cycleway to the Stadium of Light. Vehicles are advised to access this via the A1231 Wessington Way due to the closure of Keir Hardie Way.
Pick up and drop off
The designated pick up and drop off location for car passengers is the westbound carriageway of Dame Dorothy Street, a short walk from the Stadium of Light. This will be signposted on the day for drivers entering the city centre.
Taxis
All taxis will be available from the city centre taxi ranks.
Peter McIntyre, Executive Director of City Development at Sunderland City Council, said: "We're delighted to be welcoming 'The Boss' on his return visit to Sunderland. I know many people have very happy memories from when he last played here in 2012 and can't wait to see him perform again.
"We're also looking forward to welcoming people to our city from across the country as well as the wider region and I'd encourage them to visit our city centre with its fantastic range of cafes, bars and restaurants while they're here.
"We want everyone to have a brilliant night so the advice to concert goers is to plan your journey in advance and give yourself plenty of time to get there. It's also worth non concert-goers being aware that public transport and routes in and out of Sunderland are likely to be especially busy that day."