"The GNR will ensure around 200 military per day, and on the 26th there will be 230 military personnel as it is expected to be much busier", stated Major Mafalda Almeida, the spokesperson and public relations of the GNR at a press conference that took place yesterday in a hotel near the Algarve International Autodrome, in the municipality of Portimão.

The force responsible for ensuring safety at the Portuguese MotoGP guarantees that they "will act preventively and that they are prepared for all kinds of situations that may put the safety of the event in question".

Mafalda Almeida warned that the favourable weather conditions may also contribute to a greater displacement of people to the Algarve region.

The Portuguese MotoGP, the premier category of the World Motorcycle Speedway, is expected to have more than 150,000 spectators, according to the organisers of the event.

In the security operation of the event there will be military personnel from the Territorial Command of Faro, the various valences of territorial scope, traffic, intervention, criminal investigation, intervention unit, and inactivation of explosive devices, among others, as well as the National Traffic Unit.

The GNR spokeswoman stressed the importance of spectators arriving "as soon as possible" so that safety procedures run quickly and to ensure "that all spectators will be inside before the races begin.

She also recalled that all spectators holding tickets will be provided with a bus transfer service connecting to the cities of Portimão and Lagos, daily, from 7:30am, with intervals of 30 minutes.

"We stress again and we encourage the use of 'transfers' and, above all, two-wheeled vehicles, so that there is as little traffic congestion as possible," said Mafalda Almeida.

The military force warned that there will be "strong constraints" at the exit of the A22 (Via do Infante), with two accesses that can be used by drivers and that give access to the racetrack, namely the National 266, connection to the town of Montes de Cima, and the Municipal Road that connects the town of Arão to Pereira.

Car traffic will be conditioned on the main road connecting to the racetrack from the A22, at the Mexilhoeira Grande junction, on the roads between the towns of Odiáxere, Arão, Pereira and Folga, and between Rasmalho, Casas Velhas, Moinho da Rocha and Montes de Cima.

The GNR predicts that the greatest traffic conditions occurring on Friday and Saturday will be in the afternoon, between 3pm and 6pm and on Sunday there will be a large turnout mainly between 2:30pm and 5:30pm.

The GNR advises residents of the localities of Pereira, Monte de Cima and other areas near the racetrack, as well as citizens in need of passage in these localities to look for "alternative routes".

MotoGP is the most important category of the World Speedway Championship, whose 2023 championship kicks off in Portugal this weekend, ending in November 26 in Valencia.


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