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Key roads along Southsea seafront will be closed this weekend as 20,000 runners take to Portsmouth's streets for one of Britain's biggest sporting events.
The BUPA Great South Run is being held this Sunday (Oct 26) when 19,500 entrants – 1000 more than last year - will take part in the country's most important road race outside the London Marathon and the Great North Run.
This years event is being broadcast live on Channel 5 and features Paula Radcliffe running her first race since the Olympic Games marathon. Her opponents will include Kenyan star Martha Komu, who came 5th in the Olympic Games marathon.
Cllr Terry Hall said "It should be a fantastic weekend and a great couple of days. Having a world class marathon runner such as Paula Radcliffe competing is really exciting and as the race will be broadcast live on Channel 5 for the very first time, it will be a great showcase for the city."
The Great South Run will be preceded the previous day by three other races for younger competitors and The Portsmouth Mile for over 16s. Places for this are still available and entry is only £7 on the day.
This weekend is set to be a bumper weekend in Portsmouth for sport as Pompey take on Fulham at Fratton Park in a 5pm kick off. Subsequently, the city council, run organisers and football club have been working hard on the traffic issues.
Three roads will be closed from early Saturday to late Sunday afternoon -- part of Clarence Esplanade between South Parade and Jack Cockerill Way, The Dell and Jack Cockerill Way.
Two roads will close from early Saturday to late afternoon Saturday -- the part of Clarence Esplanade between Jack Cockerill Way and Pier Road, and Avenue de Caen.
Four roads will close from early Sunday to late Sunday afternoon -- Avenue de Caen, Victoria Avenue, Victoria Spur and the part of Clarence Esplanade between Jack Cockerill Way and Pier Road.
And police will implement a rolling road closure along 46 roads to ensure the safety of all the runners along the route.
On Sunday, no waiting will be enforced on 20 roads -- again to ensure there are no accidents involving runners and parked vehicles.
Car parking is available on Southsea Common however race organisers are strongly encouraging the use of public transport.
Charles Stunell, head of transport and street management:
“The council, the run organisers and the club have been working hard on the traffic issues. At our request, the club has moved the kick-off from 4pm to 5pm, and as a result we don’t think we need any specific measures to deal with incoming football traffic.
“Traffic leaving after the run will be mainly using the western route out of the city, while football traffic coming in will be mainly using the Eastern Road. Traffic coming in for the game tends to be spread out over a reasonable period, which helps.
“We'll be monitoring junctions using our control room cameras from 7am, and we’ll arrange for traffic lights to be on green for longer so traffic from the run has a smoother flow out of Portsmouth.”
Portsmouth City Council
Guildhall Square
Portsmouth
Hampshire, PO1 2BG
023 9283 4092
general@portsmouthcc.gov.uk