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Withdean Park and ride



BensGrandad

New member
Jul 13, 2003
72,015
Haywards Heath
They can stop whatever they like. How do you propose the club are going to buy buses, garage them and employ mechanics and drivers?

My suggestion was a deal with yellow buses providing the transport and we provide the parking space taking into account many games will not be at 3.00pm Saturday.
 






The Large One

Who's Next?
Jul 7, 2003
52,343
97.2FM
My suggestion was a deal with yellow buses providing the transport and we provide the parking space taking into account many games will not be at 3.00pm Saturday.

And some home games - if not most - will be on Saturday (whether 12.30pm, 3pm or 5.30pm).

To have a functioning, reliable P&R, you have it working all the time, not via some arbitrary timetable that suits you.

Driving a P&R service into the city doesn't, in itself, create a problem. The problem is purely about the parking site, one which is used primarily as a P&R site, not one which is shared on an ad hoc basis. It would cease to function as a going concern as there would be little reliability in the service.
 








Trouble is that this is no longer a true park and ride. It's a park and bus. I'm just waiting for the b*ggers to start charging for parking.
You're right, £16 quid in these circumstances is outrageous but because it's in a residential area it would be difficult to manage. Heaven forbid they trusted people to tell the truth. I've been to park and rides in Norwich and Canterbury - the council would do well to go to othe cities to learn to sort out our local transport problems.

I used to manage the Withdean park and ride scheme on behalf of East Sussex County Council (who were the transport authority when the scheme was set up). We set the fare (at £1 a passenger / free for children) and paid the bus company the difference between their costs and the fares income received.

This arrangement came to an end when Brighton & Hove City Council (who inherited the service from ESCC) decided that they could no longer afford the subsidy costs of a bespoke P&R service. It reverted to the park & bus service that we see today - not only more expensive for passengers, but also longer journey times than the non-stop service that it was originally.

All very regrettable but - as with all public services - people get what they are prepared to pay taxes for.
 


Thunder Bolt

Silly old bat
No it didnt as we were trying to get permission and needed Lewes Council we have the ground now which is outside of their domain so they should have no say in what happens, only within their area.

We need permission from Lewes DC, as well as Brighton, for some of the changes needed this summer. Source? Martin Perry.
 






My suggestion was a deal with yellow buses providing the transport and we provide the parking space taking into account many games will not be at 3.00pm Saturday.

I'm certain that if the Big Lemon thought it would be affordable for them to provide a low-cost park and ride service, they would do so. Councillor Tom Druitt, the proprietor of Big Lemon, is quite well placed to understand what the City Council might like to see.

I'm aware of the fact that an all-singing-all-dancing park and ride system can be be incredibly expensive (and controversial) to establish, especially if you are looking for several edge of town car parks to use on a full-time basis.
 




Weststander

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Aug 25, 2011
64,002
Withdean area
I used to manage the Withdean park and ride scheme on behalf of East Sussex County Council (who were the transport authority when the scheme was set up). We set the fare (at £1 a passenger / free for children) and paid the bus company the difference between their costs and the fares income received.

This arrangement came to an end when Brighton & Hove City Council (who inherited the service from ESCC) decided that they could no longer afford the subsidy costs of a bespoke P&R service. It reverted to the park & bus service that we see today - not only more expensive for passengers, but also longer journey times than the non-stop service that it was originally.

All very regrettable but - as with all public services - people get what they are prepared to pay taxes for.

Ultimately it was NOT public money in the first place. Standard Life the owners of Churchill Square were compelled to pay for it under a legally enforceable planning condition.

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/www.theargus.co.uk/news/4030623.amp

Councils didn't dip into ratepayer monies, it came from Standard Life.
 






Ultimately it was NOT public money in the first place. Standard Life the owners of Churchill Square were compelled to pay for it under a legally enforceable planning condition.

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/www.theargus.co.uk/news/4030623.amp

Councils didn't dip into ratepayer monies, it came from Standard Life.

The Standard Life contribution only came along in the very final years of the dedicated Withdean P&R service. Before that, it was definitely funded from ratepayers and Council Tax. I know that, because I was the budget holder.

It's a good illustration of how Section 106 funding can backfire. Without a doubt, it's helpful if a developer can fund a public service. But this is achieved by means of a fixed cash contribution. When the money is spent, there is no more available. When developers' contributions are used to reduce (or eliminate, as in this case) Council Tax funding of a service, once the developer's money is used up, it is extremely burdensome for Council Tax funding to be restored. As the saying goes, "we haven't got a budget for that".
 






D

Deleted User X18H

Guest
You can get a £9 family saver on the mobile . £10 from the driver if you board a 27.
 


D

Deleted User X18H

Guest
I mentioned this to my son and daughter in law as they are going shopping in Brighton pre holiday next wek and as they said which is probably typical " we will drive and pay to park as we wont be in Churchill Sq for 4 hours
Actually........you can Park off London Road it's cheaper there. And walk through North Laine/Laines/Lane
 
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The Large One

Who's Next?
Jul 7, 2003
52,343
97.2FM
No it didnt as we were trying to get permission and needed Lewes Council we have the ground now which is outside of their domain so they should have no say in what happens, only within their area.

2003-2008 obviously did pass you by.

Bennett's Field is in the Lewes District Council area, so of course they have the final say.

They also have a council that is overflowing with money

Sorry, wot...?
 


Westdene Wonder

New member
Aug 3, 2010
1,787
Brighton
Is it really easier to park in car parks in the centre of Brighton?
I avoid the car parks behind Churchill Square and the Brighton Centre, it always seems to take ages to drive into central Brighton and queue up in these car parks.

Is £4.20 per person a return bus ticket or one way?

All Day
 




Kaiser_Soze

Who is Kaiser Soze??
Apr 14, 2008
1,355
Horsham Park & Ride: £2 return for up to 5 persons after 0900. Normal service bus provides the transport, Metrobus part of the same group as B & H buses.

http://www.horshamparkandride.co.uk

Horsham have set such low prices because they are struggling to compete with other towns locally such as Crawley and Brighton. The Waitrose move to the new site has caused a lot of damage to footfall and trade in Piries Place for instance.

Brighton doesn't need to set the pricing to entice people to come. It's basically a cash cow.
 


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