OFFICIALS from the Royal International Air Tattoo hosted a meeting to discuss ways of preventing traffic queues at next year's event.

Representatives from Kempsford Parish Council, Cotswold District Council and the police forces of Wiltshire and Gloucestershire attended the meeting organised following the chaos at the world's largest airshow in July.

Tailbacks of around 10 to 15 miles in length stretched back to Junction 15 of M4 and caused some drivers to turn around and go home.

Paul Bowen, director of RIAT said: "We are determined to return to the standards set in 1999 when there were very few delays on the roads, or for visitors leaving RIAT at the end of the show.

Wednesday's meeting was very important in pinpointing the concerns of the local community and, more widely, generating many ideas for making large-scale improvements to internal and external traffic systems."

Among the ideas being put forward are a new park and ride facility, as well as professional car park management, systems to separate cyclists, pedestrians and vehicles, and the widening of car park gateways.

RIAT will also run park and ride for disabled people, using wheelchair access vehicles, and provide a special disabled enclosure on the crowdline at next year's event.

In November, officials from RIAT will hold for a two-day conference to develop a detailed RIAT 2003 traffic plan.