Why are overflow car parks an important aspect of event planning?

Planning, organisation and attention to detail are key contributing factors to a successful event. Attendees value defined and secure parking. This includes clear signposts, well-structured routes, visual stewards, designated pathways from parking to the event and other conveniently placed amenities. Guests want a seamless experience, overflow car park for events play a huge role in this.

The process of parking, entering, moving around and leaving an event make up a large part of the overall experience.

Overflow car parks contribute massively to the overall success of your event. Here’s how:

They help attendees feel safe  

Entering an event and finding parking can cause a considerable amount of stress and anxiety as it’s unfamiliar and busy. Low-budget or improperly organised events may expect attendees to simply park on grass. This can be nerve-racking for vehicle owners as it doesn’t feel like a legitimate place to leave their car unattended. Additionally, there is always a risk of their vehicle getting stuck in mud or driving over unexpected rocks and stones.

A dedicated overflow carpark using ground protection mats, creates a large, clear, flat surface that is safe for cars. It also separates the main venue area. Professional ground protection (like ours!) comes with components such as cushioned underlay and 5MPH signage for an overall safer experience.

Clear navigation can help lift the mood of attendees  

Being unsure where to park, if a one-way system is in place or where the nearest exit is, causes stress. Additionally, it wastes time and increases the risk of accidents. Temporary roadway defines roads and areas. Our HDPE ground protection mats are black in colour and our aluminium trackway panels are metallic grey. Our clients can easily add temporary reflective arrows, and entrance and exit text to them to create clear navigation. This creates a positive impression and shapes the tone for the rest of the attendee’s event experience.

Overflow carparks create accessibility & inclusivity

It is very difficult to create visible disability parking on plain grass. Free standing signs can be used but are not always visible and can be knocked, blown over or take up essential parking space. Our aluminium trackway panels can be colour-coded to clearly define their purpose. At Davis Trackhire we can also simulatiously add a secure and level temporary path to the event, suitable for wheelchair access. Wheelchairs, motorised scooters or any walking assisting devices would struggle on grass, gravel, rocky or unlevel ground.

What to consider when creating (& maintaining) an overflow car park for an event

• It is suggested by Passage in 2024, that you don’t need to allocate one parking space per guest. Instead, they suggest one parking space for every 2-4 guests. 
• You will need fewer spaces if your event has multiple entrance times throughout the day. People who entered earlier are also likely to leave earlier.
• If you have a single start and finish time for your event you will need more parking stewards on site (all briefed on a cohesive plan). This will help to co-ordinate everyone entering and leaving at once.
• According to The British Parking Association, “Government guidelines recommend that 6% of parking should be allocated to disabled people unless otherwise covered by local planning regulations. The guidance also recommends how to identify these spaces, with special markings and signage.”
• If you don’t provide enough spaces, give clear directions to your event parking or charge a fee to your ticket holders, attendees will take it into their own hands to find local or free parking. This may disrupt residents and local business owners causing congestion, local authority complaints and even accidents.

When do you know it’s time to introduce an overflow car park for upcoming events?

Temporary roadways need to be booked in advance, particularly in British summertime when festival season is occurring. If you are planning a bigger-scale event with large ticket volumes and lots of staff who will also be arriving and parking for the duration of the event, trackway should be booked months in advance in order to be set aside on your required date, in advance of the event.

If you host an annual event with a regularly renewed permit with the council or land owner, this is something we accommodate for at Davis Trackhire.

We appreciate that some events run on short notice. Sometimes they have unexpected popularity and an influx of ticket sales last minute. In cases like this, you will need to ensure enough time for the trackway provider to complete site surveys with access.

The 6-step process to creating and maintaining an overflow car park

1. Gain permission and map the specific requirements for the land – Confirm what land you will be using as your overflow carpark and gain permission from the local council or land owner. You will need to assess the size of the available space, the layout of the car park and the maximum amount of vehicles that will require parking on the space.

2. Understand both vehicle and pedestrian access requirements – Decide where your entrance and exit routes will be and consider a dedicated emergency route for emergency services to enter and leave (depending on the scale and nature of your event). The HSE is a great resource for planning for incidents and emergencies. Ensure accessibility for all attendees by including those with specific needs such as blue-badge holders. This requires planning for routes with ramps and dedicated parking spaces closest to the event. Temporary roads leading to and from the temporary overflow carpark need to be strategically planned to ensure little contact with pedestrians and vehicles.

3. Confirm whether you’re hiring or purchasing car park matting – This all depends on the scale of your events company. We have previously written insights on the benefits of hiring trackway instead of purchasing it as well as the pros and cons of temporary road dry hire.

4. Assess matting and ground cover requirements – If you choose to work with a third party like us, to supply your trackway we will conduct all relevant ground and safety assessments in order to provide the safest most appropriate temporary parking solution for your overflow car park. If you choose to purchase car park matting yourself or dry hire, you will need to decide between aluminium trackway panels, ground protection mats or tufftrak.

5. Ensure that you have clear visible signage and directions for attendees to easily locate the overflow carpark  – It is always best practice to email this information to ticket holders, before the event and clearly showcase it on your website with a map mockup. We include temporary road signage with our temporary road including 5MPH signage. Other branded signage, a site map or warning signs would also need to be planned, created and installed. When it comes to signage you also need to consider lighting.

6. Make sure you have adequate lighting to illuminate the overflow carpark at night-time – Some event attendees will have to leave early or arrive late for various reasons and will need access to the overflow park in non-daylight hours. For safety as well as security reasons lighting towers will need to be erected in the area.

Looking to introduce overflow car park solutions for upcoming events? We can help 

If you agree that parking on grass at events is unprofessional, unsafe and unfriendly for the environment then we can help plan a safe overflow carpark for your attendees.

We hold years of trusted experience, you don’t need to take our word for it, you can look at what our clients say.

Recently, we successfully created overflow parking areas and site compounds for the Edinburgh marathon festival, finish straight, baggage area, medical area and catering area.

We have also previously created a production compound for the frequent event infrastructure deliveries at the Brit Awards. This included lighting, staging and other associated equipment, as well as guest car parking for the event. 

Contact our friendly service desk team, if you have any questions regarding temporary overflow car parks and how we can help.