The World Famous City Ground - Home of the PROPER WORLD‘S OLDEST LEAGUE CLUB

[Statto]

Because there is a better solution they are looking at, just because it has been proposed doesn't mean it will be implemented.

I agree with you that it's a terrible idea.

At peak times it can't cope as it is so actually it needs widening (or more bridges built) so narrowing it to widen the pavements isn't going to do anything of benefit.

We saw when Clifton Bridge was closed how much the rest of the city locked up trying to get over Trent Bridge and Lady Bay Bridge. Permanently closing TB to 2 lanes would probably keep the whole area around the Meadow Lane/Meadows Way junction jammed up and then queues over the bridge in both directions and then maybe back into town/Wilford Lane most of the time and worse at peak times.

In terms of ground access/egress what's actually needed is to keep the pedestrians off TB at all, funnel them to the new bridge and the suspension bridge. But a temporary lane restriction either side of the matches wouldn't be too bad either. And a new road bridge, which I think Mike Adams is quite keen on...

 

[forzagaribaldi]

In terms of ground access/egress what's actually needed is to keep the pedestrians off TB at all, funnel them to the new bridge and the suspension bridge.

What a miserable proposal!

 

[MagicalQuakers]

It seems silly to make a traffic problem a permanent thing when the issue it is solving is for basically 24 hours a year! (an hour after full time for 24 games)

 

[Statto]

What a miserable proposal!

It would actually be safer and make it a lot easier on several levels.

The only real loss would be the sentiment of walking over the bridge and seeing the ground

 

[Steve B]

It would actually be safer and make it a lot easier on several levels.

The only real loss would be the sentiment of walking over the bridge and seeing the ground

Not the only loss. It’s the quickest route to where all the best post match pubs are. As if a bit of congestion is going to put anyone off. There is no way you’re re-routing me over some footbridge in the middle of nowhere.

 

[Mr H]

As an engineer, we have an adage that you don't solve one problem by causing another problem.

People will need somewhere to park, especially for night games. Pushing the parking further and further out will only cause the same problem, just for different people.

Of course: but as long as we get planning permission for a world class stadium…

 

[Notcher]

As an engineer, we have an adage that you don't solve one problem by causing another problem.

People will need somewhere to park, especially for night games. Pushing the parking further and further out will only cause the same problem, just for different people.

I'd would have helped for some years if the local authorities had an ounce of common sense amongst them. There's a huge contingent that travel from Ashfield, namely Hucknall, Kirkby, Sutton and also Mansfield. We've literally got the Robin Hood line which could take a large number of those people immediately out of the City with a massive reduction in traffic. Yet somehow the authorities and the train company fail to see the benefit of putting on 2 or 3 trains with 7 or 8 carriages each.

 

[Statto]

Not the only loss. It’s the quickest route to where all the best post match pubs are. As if a bit of congestion is going to put anyone off. There is no way you’re re-routing me over some footbridge in the middle of nowhere.

The pubs are probably there because of the bridge location and the proximity to all 3 grounds though, so that's somewhat a case of the tail wagging the dog.

It's more about getting people through to where they should be safely above other things. TB has the pedestrian barriers, so wherever they are will always be a pinch point (even the whole bridge). If people spill over onto the road that makes it more complex from a safety perspective. LBB is in some ways better in that the footway is off the road, but then harder to get to, and on the north side it just spills over into the side of the road anyway.

It's much safer for fans to be away from traffic, but the bridges can't be closed without causing their own issues.

If fans are heading to the station then it's probably quicker to head to the suspension bridge (which isn't far downstream) and then walk through the Meadows as opposed to over Trent Bridge and up London Road (which they have to cross). They don't need to go that way.

The new bridge I think is a massive white elephant in general but if fans are parking in the industrial bit by the Lady Bay retail park or further out along the A612 towards the racecourse it's a better option than using LBB and definitely using TB.

It wouldn't be that TB was stopped from being used (couldn't reasonably do that) and more that people who didn't need to go that way were encouraged to use other routes instead, so it'd actually be easier for those going to the pub... but even that's a lifestyle choice really and not too much to do with actual access/egress issues with the stadium, As per my first sentence, I'm sure if people opened a load of pubs aimed at fans on the city side near the new bridge people would use those...

 

[bearwood red]

I'd would have helped for some years if the local authorities had an ounce of common sense amongst them. There's a huge contingent that travel from Ashfield, namely Hucknall, Kirkby, Sutton and also Mansfield. We've literally got the Robin Hood line which could take a large number of those people immediately out of the City with a massive reduction in traffic. Yet somehow the authorities and the train company fail to see the benefit of putting on 2 or 3 trains with 7 or 8 carriages each.

One element of the proposed travel plan is the creation of a Transport Working Group. It is expected that EMR and NET would be represented on that group with one of the potential benefits being better planning of additional services on match days. I appreciate that if it was that easy, they would have done it already, but let’s see. Like a lot of things in that plan, they sound like good ideas, if they can actually be implemented.

For all the criticism and negativity of the planning process (some fair, some less so), it has at least forced the club to think properly about how supporters get to and from the ground. Until now, the club has not really taken any responsibility for this. Some coordinated planning and action could go a long way towards improving the matchday experience for supporters and local residents.

 

[forzagaribaldi]

It’s not just about pubs, though why you would want to suggest putting established businesses out of business is beyond me. Walking down to the suspension bridge and then up to the station would take about twice as long as heading straight over TB and down Arkwright Street.

As Notcher mentioned, we need solutions that remove the need for those travelling from north of the river to feel like their best option is to drive over into WB to park up. Better trains, prioritising bus movements from town, park and ride or walk options away from the ground.

Prioritising motor cars has got us where we currently are with congestion. Restricting pedestrian, cycle, public transport just makes the entire environment more grim and induces more demand for driving resulting in no benefit.

 

[Gaz1980]

If i lived in the north of the city/Ashfield and there was a tram stop approx where the Embankment pub is, i'd 100% use the tram back to Hucknall then drive home rather than drive all the way in and out.

 

[YellowBelly Red]

I'd would have helped for some years if the local authorities had an ounce of common sense amongst them. There's a huge contingent that travel from Ashfield, namely Hucknall, Kirkby, Sutton and also Mansfield. We've literally got the Robin Hood line which could take a large number of those people immediately out of the City with a massive reduction in traffic. Yet somehow the authorities and the train company fail to see the benefit of putting on 2 or 3 trains with 7 or 8 carriages each.

Then you'll be pleased to know that EMR have been instructed to cut services, in preparation for nationalisation later this year.

 

[Flaggers]

The tram is not reliable enough to be considered in the list of "ways to get to/from the City Ground on a match day".

 

[tricky_tree1982]

Trent Bridge is already down to 2 lanes for the match anyway with everyone jumping over those stupid barriers, which make the congestion for fans even worse! I'm sorry but if you're a driver and stupid enough to drive over Trent Bridge before or after the game, then you deserve everything you get for being so stupid to drive over it!

 

[Otis Redding]

Trent Bridge is already down to 2 lanes for the match anyway with everyone jumping over those stupid barriers, which make the congestion for fans even worse! I'm sorry but if you're a driver and stupid enough to drive over Trent Bridge before or after the game, then you deserve everything you get for being so stupid to drive over it!

Despite looking like relics from the former East Berlin, l do nonetheless accept the need for the barriers, but the number of drivers who still seem genuinely shocked when confronted by thousands of people on Trent Bridge post-match is extraordinary. Some of them must live in a bubble.

 

[sammy the snake]

Agree Otis

I’m just going to drive across Trent Bridge at 4.45 surely it’s ok….

What! There’s thousands of people here!!

The obvious answer is to simply stop traffic one hour before and after the game. Eventually people get used to the idea that a football game is on

There’s ladybay bridge. What’s wrong with that exactly? It’s just for one hour!

 

[Rzar]

I still think retractable bollards are the best option for Trent Bridge. You can close off a lane during event days and reopen it again during every other time. You still get the safety the barrier is there for (it only takes one nut job).

More should also be done to accomodate cyclists, with better parking facilities. Plenty would cycle if there was anywhere to actually park up, this would reduce congestion getting away from the ground as there is dozens of good cycleways leaving the City Ground now.

 

[sammy the snake]

 

[sammy the snake]

Simple footbridge parallel to Trent Bridge. Huge benefit to the city not just Forest

 

[Rzar]

Simple footbridge parallel to Trent Bridge. Huge benefit to the city not just Forest

I think you could achieve what that would by widening the Trentside North entrance to Trent Bridge.

The current path & an extra lane would be enough to deal with the footfall & there would be less of a bottleneck if the entrance is wider.

At the end of the day, it's not going to perfect - it's a football ground. Point is, there is loads of ways to get away from the City Ground. It's still one of the better grounds to get away from in the country, especially considering it's fairly central city location.

 

[sammy the snake]

It would be a very quick win Rzar. That bottleneck is significant enough to stop everything.

The footbridge in addition to wider approach and wider footpath on Trent bridge answers it.
20million thats all it would cost. In the grand scheme of things it’s the price of a shit piece of transfer business.

 

[Br1an01]

Spent some time today looking at the Crowd Flow Planning Report and the Travel Plan, both lengthy and detailed documents. Three observations:

I never realised how much maths and science went into predicting vehicle and people movements.

If you park on a public road within a 15 minute walk of the CG, be prepared for big changes to your matchday travel arrangements in the next few years.

All the changes needed to roads, bridges, pathways, junctions etc. are going to cost EM £millions before the first padded seat is even ordered for the new stand(s).

 

[YouReds43]

In the Premier League Handbook 25/26 capacity at start of the season was 30,404
In this season's handbook the capacity at the start of the season is 31,212

 

[Professor Wolfgang Schnell BSc. PhD.]

I wonder what the highest attendance was last season?

 

[Flaggers]

In the Premier League Handbook 25/26 capacity at start of the season was 30,404
In this season's handbook the capacity at the start of the season is 31,212

I wonder what the highest attendance was last season?

At least 1000 below that........ apparently