Huge crowds descended at The Hop Farm,
Beltring, Paddock Wood, Kent over the weekend, eagerly
awaiting a concert by Neil Young, despite the heavy rain. Many
booked the concert for months.
However, farce happened as they tried to go
home when the concert had finished at about eleven.
Belting, is in the middle of the country. Few were lucky and managed to
have a car with them or take a taxi. Others relied on the inadequate
shuttle service that was clearly ill timed to the stations.
Many were stranded when the Hop Farm shuttle
bus arrived too late at Tonbridge for the trains. South Eastern were
having a Sunday Service and the last train to London had gone.
Taxi drivers spent most of the night trying to
pick people up. Some were picked up at five o'clock in the morning. A
few people paid £300 for a cab to get home.
NP contributor Beaulieu is awaiting for
comments from the Hop Farm as to why the timing of the end of the
concert and the shuttle bus did not connect with the trains.
For large events, normally South Eastern Trains
offer more services if there is a need. Whether they were consulted
remains to be seen.
