Upcoming events - note number of bus diversions and timing of road closures
This summer has been marked by an extraordinary number of concerts at Wembley Stadium following the decision of Brent Council to allow more sporting events at the stadium. A concert even supplanted a major football match earlier this month.
Since June, until today, there have been 30 concert days.
The disruption of road closures, bus diversions and route curtailments has hit the newer residents of Wembley Park as much as the longer term residents of the wider Wembley area.
Now Wembley Park Residents Association is taking up the matter with a letter to the appropriate authorities setting out the issues and potential mitigations shared in their community which they think may be of interest to the wider Wembley community.:
If you would like to sign the letter write to: Wembley Park Residents Association Committee Email: wembleypark.ra@gmail.com with your name, road or area (optional) and the date. Respond by 5pm on Monday September 7th.
In addition to transport, Event Days also impinge on Wembley Park residents in another way impacting on mobile phone signals and WiFi connections that plummet, making it difficult to communicate with friends and family
Open Letter from Wembley Residents
Request for a Review of Event-Day Transport Arrangements and Their Impact on Local Residents
Dear Sir/Madam,
We, the undersigned residents of Wembley, are writing to express our growing concern regarding the increasing disruption caused by event-day road closures and bus diversions associated with Wembley Stadium and the surrounding entertainment venues.
We are proud to live in an area that hosts world-renowned sporting, cultural and entertainment events, and we recognise the importance these events bring to the local economy and London's international reputation. We also appreciate that public safety must remain the highest priority when managing large crowds.
However, as the number and frequency of events continue to increase—particularly on weekdays—the impact on the daily lives of residents has become increasingly difficult to manage.
For many of us, these disruptions are no longer occasional inconveniences but have become a regular part of everyday life. Public transport is our primary means of travelling to and from work, attending medical appointments, taking children to and from school or childcare, caring for relatives, shopping for essential groceries, and accessing local services. On event days, bus services are frequently diverted or suspended for extended periods, resulting in significantly longer journeys, uncertainty, and lengthy walks to temporary bus stops.
The effects extend beyond commuting. Friends and family are often discouraged from visiting because parking restrictions are extensive and public transport journeys become considerably longer during events. This has a direct impact on residents' social and family lives. Working parents frequently experience delays collecting children from childcare after work, whilst older residents and those with disabilities or reduced mobility face additional barriers to accessing healthcare and other essential services.
As residents, we contribute to our community through council tax and support local businesses throughout the year. Whilst we accept that some disruption is unavoidable, we believe residents should also have a reasonable expectation of being able to travel, work and enjoy family life with minimal disruption.
Wembley is no longer simply an events destination—it is home to a large and growing residential community. We believe that transport planning should reflect both of these important roles equally.
Immediate Improvements
We respectfully ask Brent Council, Transport for London and Wembley Stadium to review the current arrangements and consider practical measures that could significantly reduce disruption while maintaining public safety, including:
- Maintaining at least one dedicated bus corridor during event days wherever it is safe to do so.
- Limiting road closures to the shortest period operationally necessary before and after events.
- Introducing resident shuttle buses connecting residential areas with Wembley Park, Wembley Central and other key transport hubs.
- Improving advance communication regarding road closures, bus diversions and alternative travel arrangements.
- Considering the impact of weekday events on commuters, school collections, healthcare appointments and other essential journeys.
- Regularly reviewing diversion routes to ensure they minimise disruption to residents while maintaining effective crowd management.
Long-Term Strategic Solutions
As Wembley continues to expand as both a residential neighbourhood and an international events destination, we believe it is timely to undertake a comprehensive review of the area's transport infrastructure.
We ask Brent Council, Transport for London and relevant partners to explore long-term solutions that better separate event-related traffic from residential traffic. Options for consideration could include:
- Assessing the feasibility of a dedicated access route, flyover or highway connection between Wembley Stadium and the A406 North Circular Road, allowing event traffic and coaches to access the stadium without travelling through residential streets.
- Reviewing the surrounding road network to identify opportunities to reduce the volume of event traffic using local roads.
- Improving traffic management systems and navigation routing so that event traffic is directed via appropriate strategic routes rather than residential streets wherever possible.
- Ensuring that future regeneration and transport planning gives equal consideration to the needs of Wembley residents alongside those of the stadium and entertainment venues.
We recognise that these options would require detailed technical studies, consultation and investment. However, with Wembley continuing to grow, now is the appropriate time to begin planning transport infrastructure that is fit for both its residents and its role as an international events destination.
Our Request
We respectfully request that Brent Council, Transport for London and Wembley Stadium:
- Undertake a comprehensive review of event-day transport arrangements.
- Consult with local residents on the impact of current road closures and bus diversions.
- Publish the findings of that review together with proposed improvements.
- Develop both short-term operational changes and a long-term transport strategy that better balances the needs of residents with those of major events.
We firmly believe it is possible to maintain Wembley as one of the world's leading sporting and entertainment destinations whilst also ensuring that those who call Wembley home are able to live, work and travel with minimal disruption.
We appreciate your consideration of these concerns and look forward to your response.
17 comments:
i live on the Kings Drive/Pilgrims Way estate and sympathetic to the above open letter. I tried to raise the problems regarding the curtailment of the 206 bus route in a letter to the Brent and Kilburn Times recently but it was not published. Here it is: Dear Editor,
It is ironical that the new Wembley Stadium was designated a public transport destination but on event days residents lose their access to local public transport.
In 2024 Brent Council agreed to up to 54 non-sporting events annually at the Stadium and this has impacted on residents' ability to move around the area on many days of the year.
It is particularly true of the 206 bus route that runs between The Paddocks at Wembley Park and Kilburn Park. On event days it is curtailed at Bridge Park often hours before the concert or match begins. This leaves no service between Wembley Park and Kilburn Park and affects workers travelling to their jobs in the light industrial area south of the stadium and Tesco/Ikea, shoppers and school children travelling back to their homes in Harlesden,
Elderly people and those carrying heavy shopping roads are faced with a steep walk up the Kings Drive hill when there is no bus service. Understandably many don't make the attempt and stay isolated at home on event days. Few can afford an Uber to make the short journey.
A resident's June letter to Brent Council making these points has remained unanswered contributing to a feeling that residents come a very poor second to the interests of Wembley Stadium.
Several years ago Brent Council had promised that the rejoining of North End Road to Bridge Road would enable the 206 bus to circumvent the closed roads around the stadium and run on event days. This was not to be: in November 2023 the Cabinet lead told a delegation to Full Council that the rebuilt road could not take the weight of the electric buses that run on the 206 bus route and a culvert would need strengthening. Since then there has been silence on progress.
Given their decision to grant permission for additional stadium events, surely it is Brent Council's duty to residents to reduce the impact on residents by working with Transport for London and Wembley Stadium on mitigation measures to restore freedom of movement to Wembley Park residents.
For a start TfL should not curtail the 206 bus service many hours before concerts, and how about Wembley Stadium financing a shuttle lightweight bus service along the North End Road route to Bridge Park on event days pending completion of the culvert works?
Martin Francis
Like moving next to a church and complaining about the bells. Or moving next to a farm and complaining about smell. Wembley is world famous for events and the reason they have yuppie flats all around wembley park is because of the stadium and the events. This area of london is our designated events area. For people facing ‘disruption’, you don’t need to drive. Its bad for the environment. Walk, catch the tube.
Can you imagine my flat next to the stadium. Events days for my family curfew days. I already mentioned growing problems how to implement solutions my two Wembley park Warsame, Councillor Najib , Ahmadi Moghaddam, Councillor Iman
I believe both will helps for residences living around secure and dignity.
25 August 2026 at 16:29 Yes, this point is often made and to some extent is true, However, if the churches are given approval for many more services and subsequent bell ringing the villagers would complain. Brent Council were warned about increasing the number of event days when the Stadium made a submission to Planning. On event days local people cannot get from Wembley Park to Wembley Central and you trying hopping on the tube when thousands of fans are surging up or down both sides of the staircases. Recently i had to take an elderly friend with mobility problems into the Premier Inn, next to Wembley Park station, for an hour to wait for the crowd to disperse.
I think the residents need to be a bit more flexible but definitely the Stadium could do far more to mitigate the impact of the events. They do the bare minimum.
Perhaps the “Event Day” Zone should restrict not just parking but also driving by outsiders into the 2 mile exclusion area around the Stadium. That would be free up the roads and not block them for movement by buses. Sadly selfish residents are making money from renting out their parking spaces on Event day thus encouraging those who can afford to pay to drive into the area resulting in buses being stuck in traffic jams.
The renting out of driveways really needs to be dealt with. Residents complain about the traffic in one breath and then pocket £20 in the other!
You bought that flat knowing what wembley stadium was. It used to be an industrial area. Before that it used to be parkland. Residents need to get used to living next to such a place.
In answer to a previous remark, residents are extremely flexible. We go out earlier if needed, we don’t attend family events or leave before the concert ends. When I moved here we had very few concerts and only a handful of football matches. The concerts/football this year has been in excess of 50 events. Restaurants are a no go for local people as are the pubs. The residents get nothing in return
All residents in Wembley are impacted by the huge increase in the number of major huge events at Wembley Stadium!!! 😞
We can't have visitors due to event day parking restrictions which start so early on event days - if a concert starts at 5.30pm why do parking restrictions start at 8.00am???
Most of the buses are diverted creating problems for commuters trying to get home on event days - particularly bad for vulnerable women and girls!!!
Traffic jams in Ealing Road and Wembley High Road are really bad on event days making it impossible for anyone to get around.
Local businesses are suffering because shoppers are put off visiting our area on event days hence Wembley High Road is disintegrating into a gambling and fast food heaven. More varied shops ard leaving in droves and who can blame them.
And also a lot of long established businesses in Ealing Road are closing - the latest is the Joshi Fabric Shop which has been there since 1978 but suffer as customers go elsewhere on event days.
We are all proud of our national stadium but it is quickly becoming just a cash cow for multibillion pound music artists and their greedy promoters.
What if you can't walk???
What if you need carers who cant get to you by car or bus on event days???
What if you are a lone female trying to get home safely and have to walk because the buses are diverted on event days???
£20 is cheap, more like £30-£40 for a concert!!!
And it encourages residents to concrete over their front gardens damaging the environment 😞
Events at Wembley Stadium have massively increased since the majority of the new flats were built - 66 events this year! - but Cllr Butt with all his freebie tickets just doesn't care.
It's really bad when public transport is so badly affected.
Commuters are really badly affected.
What can the stadium do? They don't run public transport or manage the traffic on our roads or enforce ridiculously long parking restrictions - these are managed by Brent Council and TFL.
And it was Brent Council that gave permission for all the extra events so ask them what they intend to do to make our quality of life better.
Wembley Stadium is the National Football stadium so you should expect all the football matches.
But totally agree there are now too many concerts and as the concerts go on longer the parking restrictions, bus diversions, traffic jams etc are impacting us all 😡
it appears theres no thought about how this negatively affects animals either,
can i just add that the events themselves tend to always let off fireworks around 10pm and has our dog completly scared shivering and hiding ! the increase of events is not good for our wellbeing!
I’m afraid I disagree with your thoughts on this. Many residents have lived here before the new stadium was built and if newer concerts were not taking place at the frequency we now experience. Weekly disruption often on consecutive days isn’t acceptable. We’re not interested in “Harry Styles record breaking run of performance”. Even more challenging is the firework displays. It’s time for Wembley stadium to ban these and introduce drone displays. The noise and air pollution is unacceptable.
As Martin states residents still need to carry out their daily lives including hospital appointments and the 206 bus services Central Middlesex Hospital. We’re encouraged to use cars less but we don’t have access to our public transport. Why should buses be diverted to allow concert goers to drive and have priority?
Were constantly told the money brought into Wembley benefits business but how many of those are local resident owned compared to larger retail chains. Sometime it’s not all about the money except for how our taxes are deployed.
Personally I feel residents should raise a class action of some kind against the council because we need a a resident centred plan and not just an income generating plan. I couldn’t tell you how I’ve benefitted from all of these concerts as I’ve not seen a reduction in my council tax bill, or reduced anything relating to the council.
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