RockNess prepares for revellers

Advertisement

Organisers said the recession has had little impact on ticket sales

Tens of thousands of music fans are heading north for the fourth RockNess festival.

The event, on the shores of Loch Ness, has been stretched to three days.

According to the organisers, the recession has had little impact on ticket sales with more than 35,000 revellers expected over the weekend.

Headliners include the Prodigy, Dizzy Rascal, Scots indie-rock favourites Biffy Clyro, with the US band Flaming Lips headlining on Friday.

One couple are even getting married in an inflatable church on the site and a forecast of some showery rain seems unlikely to dampen fans' spirits.

'Devastating consequences'

Insp John Smith, head of the road policing unit at Northern Constabulary, offered travel advice to those attending.

"I would ask anyone planning to head to the festival to question their need for taking a vehicle and if so think about when you're leaving to make sure you are rested and not over the limit to drive," he said.

"There are many buses travelling to and from the event from the bus station in Inverness so I would encourage people to take advantage of this service.

"Driving with any alcohol in your system can drastically affect your reaction time and coupled with tiredness can have devastating consequences.

"We will, as we have in previous years, be taking a robust stance to those driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs."

Insp Smith added: "We have a number of officers working all weekend to reduce the level of disruption to the area, but I would like to remind those heading for the festival that there will be queues as they near the venue and to be mindful that there may be pedestrians walking by the road."