A 30km-long traffic snarl-up prevented thousands of people
from attending the airshow. Some people were so put off by
the congestion they just decided to go home.
Police earlier attributed the traffic jam to a collision
between a car and a motorcycle in the area around 9am,
however a witness who passed the accident shortly after it
occurred said the traffic began building up closer to the air
base itself.
The queue increased as an estimated 60,000 people headed to
Ohakea for the airshow.
By 10am, traffic was backed up at least 30km to Levin and
beyond. It was still stalled at midday and police expected
the problem to continue throughout the afternoon.
The airshow, to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Royal
New Zealand Air Force, was expected to be a huge event. More
than 10,000 people bought tickets online and another 50,000
were expected to turn up at the gates.
Those trapped in traffic had doubts they would even see the
show as they crawled towards the air base at around two
kilometres an hour.
Nic Steenhout, 40, said he left his home in Palmerston North
at 9am. The journey would usually take 25 minutes but by 11am
he was yet to reach halfway.
"We might not be there till after lunch at this rate. This is
the military, you would expect them to be quite logistical
and organised," Steenhout said.
"A whole lot of people are getting out and walking."
Steenhout was unable to see the planes flying from the road,
he added.
Local resident Leslie Potroz said the traffic had built up
from 8am - an hour before the show kicked off.
"It's terrible. It's been there all morning, since I went to
get the mail. There must be a lot of disappointed people. A
lot of people are turning around."
The motorcyclist involved in the accident near the air base
was taken to Palmerston North Hospital with serious head
injuries.
Source: http://www.odt.co.nz
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