Goldenvoice, the organizer of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, issued a public apology for significant traffic issues that caused campers to wait up to 12 hours to access the festival grounds during Weekend 1. Senior VP George Cunningham addressed the La Quinta City Council, explaining that early arrivals and staffing shortages contributed to the delays. To prevent a repeat, plans for Weekend 2 include adding more tollbooths for security checks. Councilmember Kathleen Fitzpatrick criticized the lack of adequate facilities for attendees, highlighting community concerns about restrooms and sanitation. Cunningham assured improvements to lessen community impact.
This week, the organizers of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival issued a public apology regarding the traffic issues that left campers waiting in their vehicles for hours during the first weekend of this year’s festival. To prevent a similar situation from occurring again, they have committed to implementing solutions before the start of Weekend 2 on Friday.
During a discussion with the La Quinta City Council on Tuesday, George Cunningham, the senior vice president of public safety at Goldenvoice, elaborated on the challenges faced and the measures being taken to tackle them.
Cunningham’s comments followed reports from car campers who experienced extensive traffic delays, with waiting times exceeding 12 hours on Thursday, April 10, as cars formed long lines around the Empire Polo Club, particularly on Monroe and Madison streets.
Hundreds of cars wait in a series of lines to get through a security screening area before arriving at the car camping grounds at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., Thursday, April 10, 2025.
Cunningham noted that the extensive wait times were exacerbated by the early arrival of campers on Thursday morning, which “didn’t let up” throughout the day.
“Typically, we see a lull (on Thursday) between 1:00 and 6:00 p.m., when traffic calms down,” Cunningham explained. “This year, we didn’t have that. Everyone wanted to arrive early.”
He attributed the surge in arrivals partly to the festival’s first Thursday night performance featuring DJ Chris Lake, which prompted many campers to show up earlier than usual. By 4:30 p.m. that Thursday, there were already 6,300 campers on site, while in previous years, that number would typically not be reached until much later in the day.
The festival also faced what Cunningham referred to as “staffing challenges,” noting that they were unable to fully staff all 32 tolling stations designated for car security screening on Thursday morning.
“We had six tolls that were not operational,” Cunningham stated. “We’ve addressed this issue and have plans in place to ensure that if our staffing partner is unable to cover a shift, we can quickly implement a backup plan with additional personnel.”
For Weekend 2 of Coachella and the upcoming Stagecoach festival, organizers will also be adding 12 new tollbooths for security checks at Lot 2A, located near Madison Street and Avenue 50, according to Cunningham.
“We’re focused on getting vehicles off the streets and into designated lots to minimize the impact on the local community,” Cunningham affirmed.
“Am I guaranteeing that there will be absolutely no impact? No, I cannot assure that, but I can promise you that the impact will be significantly less than what was experienced this past Thursday,” he added.
Cunningham indicated that the plan would be reassessed and possibly adjusted in preparation for the Stagecoach festival, scheduled for April 25-27, if the operational standards are not met.
Council member criticizes ‘unacceptable’ traffic issues, lack of bathrooms
The traffic situation particularly frustrated Councilmember Kathleen Fitzpatrick, who resides near the Empire Polo Club. (While the festival grounds are located in Indio, they border La Quinta to the south and west.)
“I live right there and have for 19 years,” Fitzpatrick stated during the meeting. “What we experienced on Thursday was unacceptable.”
“It was unacceptable because it’s appalling to invite so many people into our community without providing adequate facilities for restrooms or water,” she continued. “It’s frankly embarrassing.”
Fitzpatrick mentioned that she received calls from residents in her area about the unsightly situation, including reports of human waste on the streets as a result of inadequate restroom facilities.
“How can you justify that happening in our city?” Fitzpatrick questioned. “It’s one thing to promote a great festival (and) claim to be leaders in the industry, but it’s another to neglect the needs of the city of La Quinta, which is precisely how it appeared.”
In response, Cunningham assured the council that festival organizers are indeed concerned about Coachella’s effect on the surrounding community.
Mayor Pro Tem Deborah McGarrey inquired about how traffic updates are communicated to festival-goers before their arrival, noting that there were still backups along Avenue 54 around 9 p.m. last Thursday.
Mayor Linda Evans remarked that traffic seemed to flow more smoothly for the remainder of the weekend, referencing “Wind-chella” in 2018 as an example of overcoming past challenges that led to delays.
“There are years when things run very smoothly, and then some new challenge arises,” Evans noted. “This year, it was the addition of a major performer in the campground area, an adjustment that visitors were not accustomed to, coupled with various issues that cropped up.”
More: 7 most memorable moments of Coachella 2025 Weekend 1
Tom Coulter covers the cities of Palm Desert, La Quinta, Rancho Mirage and Indian Wells. Reach him at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Coachella organizers issue public apology for Weekend 1 camping delays