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Bridge Car Park post match



Jul 7, 2003
8,574
May I recommend Seagull travel? I have tried P & R @ MR, Mithras, Race course plus trains . Yes you have to pay a bit extra but you save on petrol and parking fees at the Bridge. You arrive in good time and after the match you sit in a warm coach or bus and are on your way within 20 minutes of the end of the match. It sure beats queuing for buses trains or the awful exit from Bridge car park.

I use Seagull Travel for evening games for that very reason. However, last night was a nightmare with our coach not getting to Village Way until 5 minutes before kick off.
 


Billy Seagull

Bookie Basher
Jul 5, 2003
1,431
We parked at Mithras and walked back, as we always do from WSU after clapping the players off, and was in Eastbourne just as the 23:00 news started on the radio. No point in queuing for the bus when the brisk walk takes 35/40 minutes and we breezed up past The Amex and the car parks on the way home. The queue at the bridge junction took slightly longer than normal but not much and the Amex car parks still looked busy as we went past at 60mph on an empty A27.

If the trains were reliable we would use those. Easier on Saturdays to use the train but on a work night I want to guarantee getting home at a sensible hour.
 


IanH

9sept1978
Nov 6, 2010
73
We asked one of the stewards. They apparently weren't allowed to let cars go from the moment a decent quantity of people started walking back from the game due to the safety risks. So everyone had to sit still for an hour until the ground was cleared. Apparently they said that comes directly from the club and will continue into the future. I've sent an email complaining and asking for my money back as it was abysmal. You can't make people pay £12 or more for parking and then not let them leave.

How about spending some of the money generated from bridge street parking on building a bridge crossing (like at the station) to allow cars to leave whilst walkers cross using the bridge rather than both attempting to use the same tunnel.
 


Wardy's twin

Well-known member
Oct 21, 2014
8,402
I walked back up the hill to Woodingdean having had my pint was home about 10:45 - pitch dark what fun.
 






Pavilionaire

Well-known member
Jul 7, 2003
30,521
I've use the Bridge Car Park regularly since it was opened and last night was the worst queuing ever. I got out of there at 10.55 with plenty still left in there.
 




AlastairWatts

Active member
Nov 1, 2009
500
High Wycombe
Absolutely and utterly shambolic. The so-called stewards seemed to have no idea how to allow drivers out in turn; seemed to have no control over some drivers and I wouldn't have put them in charge of a small scalextric track. I got out of there just before eleven. If it wasn't for the general goodwill of the drivers in there it could easily have turned ugly .My chief regret is that I've paid in advance for the season. Never again...
 




Nixonator

Well-known member
Feb 8, 2016
6,733
Shoreham Beach
Absolutely and utterly shambolic. The so-called stewards seemed to have no idea how to allow drivers out in turn; seemed to have no control over some drivers and I wouldn't have put them in charge of a small scalextric track. I got out of there just before eleven. If it wasn't for the general goodwill of the drivers in there it could easily have turned ugly .My chief regret is that I've paid in advance for the season. Never again...

Half of the problem is the amount of pedestrians walking thorough the tunnel or crossing the road towards moulscombe or just crossing the road to actually get to their car. This stops a steady stream of cars actually being able to get out and delays everyone by a significant amount of time.
 


Green Cross Code Man

Wunt be druv
Mar 30, 2006
19,632
Eastbourne
Half of the problem is the amount of pedestrians walking thorough the tunnel or crossing the road towards moulscombe or just crossing the road to actually get to their car. This stops a steady stream of cars actually being able to get out and delays everyone by a significant amount of time.

The traffic lights are also a problem. They massively favour the a27 which at the end of an evening match has little traffic on it anyway. A few matches back the police stopped traffic manually and prioritised the car parks which massively speeded things up. We got to the car park about 5 to 10 and left just after 11. Ridiculous. As someone else said, the stewards seemed to favour the top.
 


blue'n'white

Well-known member
Oct 5, 2005
3,080
2nd runway at Gatwick
Used to use Mill Road on a Saturday (in the first couple of seasons) but was unable to get to evening matches. Have used the train which is dreadful
Now I use Seagull Travel from Redhill and, as stated above, it's so much easier. Admittedly it's (probably) not "door to door" but it beats sitting in a traffic jam wasting your own petrol. Wouldn't go to the Amex any other way now
 




Tom Hark Preston Park

Will Post For Cash
Jul 6, 2003
69,882
Half of the problem is the amount of pedestrians walking thorough the tunnel or crossing the road towards moulscombe or just crossing the road to actually get to their car. This stops a steady stream of cars actually being able to get out and delays everyone by a significant amount of time.

Would have thought a simple set of temporary traffic lights would easily sort that one out, to separate cars from pedestrians.
 


el punal

Well-known member
For mid-week matches I use Mithras House P&R. In recent games I've noticed how quickly it fills up around 6.00pm. At the recent rearranged Cardiff fixture I took the last remaining space - it was 6.10.
So, because of this, I now leave Southampton at 3.30pm (!!) to ensure that I have a relatively stress free journey and get to the Amex in good time.

The other point to consider is how many people now use cars rather than rail travel? The complete balls-up with Southern's rail service over the last few months could account for this, and the subsequent delays getting to and from the match.
 


Green Cross Code Man

Wunt be druv
Mar 30, 2006
19,632
Eastbourne
Would have thought a simple set of temporary traffic lights would easily sort that one out, to separate cars from pedestrians.
I think the sheer volume of people walking down into Brighton is problematic. There would need to be calming measures put in place, otherwise there may well be a danger of a crush. Can't see it happening.
 




Daffy Duck

Stop bloody moaning!
Nov 7, 2009
3,824
GOSBTS
We always use the Bridge car park for evening games and I can honestly say that Tuesday night was the worst ever!
We were parked at the lower end of the car park and nothing moved for over half an hour. Always stay behind after the games and it's usually cleared after about an hour.

On Tuesday, the useless stewards were letting everyone from the top end go first instead of filtering the cars a bit at a time and by the time we got to the exit, they were all leaving.
It would seem that they get paid for just standing around chatting whilst chaos reigns around them.

At £12 a pop, you'd think the club would invest in a bit of training for these useless so and so's.
 


sparkie

Well-known member
Jul 17, 2003
12,466
Hove
For mid-week matches I use Mithras House P&R. In recent games I've noticed how quickly it fills up around 6.00pm. At the recent rearranged Cardiff fixture I took the last remaining space - it was 6.10.
So, because of this, I now leave Southampton at 3.30pm (!!) to ensure that I have a relatively stress free journey and get to the Amex in good time.

The other point to consider is how many people now use cars rather than rail travel? The complete balls-up with Southern's rail service over the last few months could account for this, and the subsequent delays getting to and from the match.


This will have a massive impact, somewhat mitigated on the strike nights when the additional park and ride at Sainsbury West Hove has been available.
 


tubby

Active member
Aug 15, 2008
184
The Race Hill queue was bad but I left 40 minutes after the game ended and was back in Hangleton via Mill Road P&R at 11pm.
 


Exile

Objective but passionate
Aug 10, 2014
2,367
With a 90-odd minute drive home, a son with school the next day, and a refusal to ever leave a game early, getting away from the car park is pretty high up my list of priorities. I've only used the Bridge when the Uni car park has been unavailable - maybe 4 times total. I'd never, ever use it out of choice - its simply not fit for purpose. The stewards do seem ineffective, but there's a limit to what difference they could make anyway - the situation is identical to Bennett's Field before the improvements:

1. The car park cannot be opened until the pedestrians are clear. That will never change unless an alternative pedestrian route to the tunnel could somehow be provided.

2. With only one exit point there will always be a massive bottleneck.

3. The stewards cannot control the exit row by row, because with no barriers anywhere frustrated / opportunist drivers are not prepared to queue patiently, and are constantly cutting through spaces, etc to steal a march on others.

The situation - just as BF was previously - is genuinely dangerous. Cars cutting about everywhere in the dark, with no safe walkways. I'm amazed nobody has been seriously hurt yet.
 




BNthree

Plastic JCL
Sep 14, 2016
10,778
WeHo
The other point to consider is how many people now use cars rather than rail travel? The complete balls-up with Southern's rail service over the last few months could account for this, and the subsequent delays getting to and from the match.


Midweek games are especially bad for this. Saturday afternoon matches a lot more people seem happy with public transport of some kind but seems a lot more people drive for evening games to ensure they get home before midnight (in theory anyway!).
 


Saladpack Seagull

Just Shut Up and Paddle
Utter nightmare. Went nowhere for an hour and when we did begin to inch forward witnessed some really aggressive driving culminating in a steward nearly being run down by a guy determined to force his way through. Shan't be repeating the experience (was first time at the Bridge). Getting there was a total nightmare too. We covered the 17 miles of the journey in an hour and twenty minutes. Got home at 2340hrs. Pathetic. Made worse by the defeat!
 



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