By Dave Lord

FURIOUS KINROSS-SHIRE residents who demanded that the massive T in the Park festival be axed have been told the catastrophic start to last month’s event was down to climate change.

At a heated public meeting earlier this week they criticised the extravaganza’s organisers, suggesting their licence should be revoked.

Hundreds of thousands of revellers attend the festival each year but the 2007 event got off to the worst possible start as heavy rain forced the closure of on-site car parks.

Tailbacks of up to 12 miles resulted and, with major and minor routes gridlocked, residents said they were trapped in their own homes. Some called for compensation, insisting they had been unable to get to work as a result of the chaos.

Others were “disgusted” by the number of revellers who urinated in gardens after drinking heavily and becoming stuck in their cars.

Local councillors also slammed T in the Park’s organisers, insisting problems “must be dealt with” if the festival is to continue.

In an attempt to pour oil on troubled waters, organisers Big Day Out suggested that global weather changes completely outside their control were to blame for the traffic problems.

While it appears unlikely any such suggestion will cut much ice with Kinross-shire folk, the organisers insist it is a valid point.

“There seems to be a consensus that we have been the victim of the effects of climate change,” said a Big Day Out spokesman.

The spokesman said, “We must accept that we will need to take further remedial measures in the future to cope with increased effects of climate change.

“The primary cause of the congestion on the Friday was weather related,” he said.

“We have operated car parks successfully at T in the Park for over 10 years.

“While opinion had always been that the land for the car parks would cope with the number of cars, in hindsight this was not the case, much to the surprise of everyone involved in the planning.”

The spokesman confessed the traffic problems had been “severe” but pointed out that additional security checks in the wake of the terror incident at Glasgow Airport had also had a detrimental effect.

Local councillors had called for the organisers to issue a public apology and the Big Day Out spokesman added, “We do apologise to anyone that felt inconvenienced by the event.

“We can assure residents that their comments will form an integral part of our debrief. They can rest assured that the traffic problems this year will not be repeated in 2008.”

Meanwhile, Perth and Kinross Council has said licence conditions for the festival, which is Scotland’s largest, will be “reviewed” after this week’s public meeting.

“Although T in the Park operates on a three-year licence the council recognises that the event still needs to be regulated, so we reserve the right to review the conditions of the licence annually,” a spokesman said.

“This is a stringent process involving the council, the organisers, the emergency services and other external partners such as SEPA and Scottish Water.

“During the process all aspects of the previous year’s event are examined in detail.

“All problems that occurred this year will be taken into account when formulating the conditions for next year’s T in the Park.

“We understand the frustration of local residents and they can be assured that their concerns will be considered when the conditions for next year’s festival are being drawn up.”