What a Liberty! It's not fine for fans

25 January 2006 - Western Mail

YOU pay your £15 entry fee, £3 for a programme ... and after the match hand over £30 for your parking fine.

That is the kind of match day more than 500 Swansea City and Ospreys fans have been "treated to" so far this season at the club's 20,000-seater new Liberty Stadium. That's a total £15,000 in fines so far. Plus several fans' illegally-parked cars have been towed away leading to sums of around £100 being paid to recover them from pounds.

Many have criticised the stadium's limited available parking but operators Stadco pointed out it has organised park and ride services so fans can access the stadium. But there are still many who have parked in residential streets in nearby places like Hafod or Morriston, leading to rich pickings for police and parking wardens.

At the club's last home game against Hartlepool last Saturday, police said one car was towed away and 28 drivers received fixed penalty notices. A quick calculation makes that almost £1,000.

The action came after police received a surge in complaints from residents about the number of illegally-parked cars on match days over the last few months. Police said the car towed away last Saturday was causing a considerable obstruction.

Some fans say they try to use the council's park and ride but add that on Saturdays buses are reserved for shoppers and head for the city centre, not Liberty Stadium.

Swans supporter Nigel Davies, editor of the fanzine A Touch Far Vetched, criticised the parking situation yesterday, saying some enterprising people living near the ground offered £5 for "watched car parking" on their private property.

He said, "It was inevitable this would happen and parking fines have become a cash cow for the police. A long-term solution must be the building of a multi-storey car park which would also provide money for the council. Or possibly a rail link directly to the ground which was part of the original transport plan but which has now been forgotten about.

"Some fans have complained about break-ins when they park in legal spots around the ground, so security is an issue too. For the elderly supporters, how can they park a few miles away and walk? It's been badly thought out."

But South Wales Police say last weekend's fixed penalty figures were lower than those of earlier matches showing "some drivers had listened to the message". They totalled 47 in the previous game - raising around £1,400.

Chief Inspector Keith Bowman said, "The Liberty Stadium operators and other partners have been working very hard to provide extra parking spaces during match days and with an extra 450 parking spaces provided last Saturday, there is no excuse for parking in areas other than legal spaces.

"The towing was one of our last resorts and we don't implement this policy unless absolutely necessary. We will keep the towing scheme as an option for any future games. However, the most important message we would like to send to match visitors is that they should use designated parking areas provided by the stadium and local authority."

FOOTBALL FAN COULD SUE STADIUM BOSSES

6 January 2006

An angry Swansea football fan is considering suing bosses at the city's new £27 million stadium.
He says their decision to scrap a park and ride service from the west of the city to the Liberty Stadium goes against their travel plan for getting fans to the ground.

John Jones, of Baglan, said that when the stadium at Landore was being planned and concerns were raised about the lack of parking, developers argued that three park and ride services would ferry supporters from different parts of the city.

When the stadium first opened, three were set up. But that has now fallen to two, with the axing of the service from the Recreation Ground next to St Helen's.

StadCo, the stadium management company, stopped the service and asked fans to use regular service buses, arguing it would mean quicker journey times.

But fans have been left angry and waiting for buses for up to three-quarters of an hour after matches, as thousands queue for a ride home.Mr Jones says he cannot understand the decision to stop the popular service.

He said: "I am a bit frustrated by what is going on. I have been told it was the stadium's decision to axe the service.

"I did talk to the stadium and they said that they wanted to offer the best facilities for supporters so they had decided to dispense with the park and ride.

"They felt it would be better if the supporters had free parking at County Hall and got the number 54 bus."

But Mr Jones says the new system just is not working.

He said: "Why have they stopped what was a good thing? It was such an effective system. The main problem with the latest idea is coming back. People go up in dribs and drabs but when we come out of the ground we are talking about hundreds of people at the same time."

Mr Jones want to know the reasons behind the decision and said he was considering legal action.

He said: "That is what I am exploring, I think I have been badly done by, and thousands of others.

"Their website still says there is a park and ride in the west of the city on their travel plan. That document doesn't make any exceptions. It said the philosophy of the stadium was to provide park and ride.

"I am aggrieved they have reneged on their promise to provide park and ride facilities."

A spokeswoman for Swansea Council said no planning conditions had been broken.

She said: "The travel plan is the subject of ongoing review and all other conditions have been, or are being, complied with."

A spokesman for the stadium management company said: "The original planning conditions for the stadium required the production of a travel plan, which has been fully complied with.

"In fact, this plan is continually reviewed and updated to take into account the evolving needs of the stadium and its visitors."