The queues (4 Viewers)

[Nuskyblue]

People that dumb should be escorted home tbf.

If Greggs was still here we wouldn't have this issue. The man knew all about printed tickets, it was his niche.

 

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[bigfatronssba]

What are they actually looking for with the searches?

 

[chiefdave]

It would help if those with paper tickets actually folded them where the lines are to put it in the ticket machine. There were 4 in front of us trying to feed the scanner with A4 paper.

If you fold them along the lines printed on the ticket they don't fit in the scanner!

 

[Nick]

what do they sell? Have never ventured there. Might have to give it a try. Usually go to anecdote or Dhillons. Beer in the ground is shite, had to resort to a HT Stella last night as the anecdote was closed again

Stella, bud I think.

Usually they have a bit of life

 

[Great_Expectations]

The queues have been a nightmare all season. It’s a constant frustration and definitely worse than previous years.

I use different turnstiles, (usually) arrive with a decent amount of time to spare and always had a ST so no messing about with paper/phones.

I said this a few games ago and got some kickback for it, but asking people to arrive early is not an appropriate strategy for tackling this issue. The stadium needs to be doing more. Other grounds don’t have this issue, so it clearly isn’t inconceivable that they can do better!

 

[pusbccfc]

You don’t have to go in where your seat is even though your season tickets gives you 3-4 turnstiles to use. If you go in the North side you can get in virtually straight away then walk through the concourse.

The queues are always long in the North Stand

 

[pusbccfc]

Stella, bud I think.

Usually they have a bit of life

Tbf the range inside the ground is very, very good compared to other grounds.

Mahou, Stella, Camden Hells, Budweiser and the Dhillon's stuff. Beats Sunderland with just Carling bottles, Norwich with Carlsberg and Birmingham with a £6.10 Amstel.

 

[Old Warwickshire lad]

What are they actually looking for with the searches?

Us old gits trying to smuggle a flask of hot tea in.

 

[Nick]

Tbf the range inside the ground is very, very good compared to other grounds.

Mahou, Stella, Camden Hells, Budweiser and the Dhillon's stuff. Beats Sunderland with just Carling bottles, Norwich with Carlsberg and Birmingham with a £6.10 Amstel.

It's just inside the pints have no life in them and the ones outside are poured to order (not sat about)

 

[pusbccfc]

It's just inside the pints have no life in them and the ones outside are poured to order (not sat about)

Yeah agreed. Should be something that could be sorted.

They need to properly invest in screens as well. Tiny little things aren't enough to watch the mid-day kick off there

 

[pusbccfc]

Just adding to this, does anyone remember a short period years back when they started playing lunchtime kick offs on the scoreboard?

 

[shmmeee]

Not gonna help queues but what’s happened to kick it for a ticket? We seem to have dropped everything other than the football from inside the bowl.

 

[Ashdown]

Fucksake , if they made it £3.50 a pint with the choices they have now then they might get more takers earlier on.

 

[Sky Blue Pete]

Reply from the coo

Thank-you for you e-mail.

I did walk around the stadium yesterday pre-game and was made aware of the queues. There was a malfunction with the East stand turnstiles which did lead to delays entering the stadium for some fans. The arena did move to a manual entry system once aware but clearly this will slow the entry process down, the focus here was to get everybody in the stadium in a safe manner. I did hear the stewarding team asking people to use alternative turnstiles, but supporters were reluctant to move from their position which in the heat of the moment you can understand.

We will be looking at communications ahead of the next FA cup game, as like you have highlighted below with the increased amount of paper / print at home tickets, it does slow entry down into the stadium if not used correctly.

I have been reviewing the last couple of games both inside the bowl and outside to understand the points which have been raised and will be working closely with the arena to see what improvements can be made to the supporter experience.

Please do reach out if you have any other concerns or questions.

Thanks
John


John Taylor

 

[mmttww]

Nice one for sharing, @Sky Blue Pete.

COO sounds sincere and honest. Good start.

 

[SBAndy]

Reply from the coo

I’m not sure I buy the “turnstile malfunction” line as I’ve heard it for all the other games with paper tickets. Genuinely think it’s user error in 90+% of cases which is due to the paper tickets.

 

[JAM See]

This is the thing: people spending in the casino/Dhillons/wherever could be spending that money in the stadium instead. Granted, there’s the disconnect between club and stadium but from a pure business perspective it’s in the stadium’s interests to get people in as soon as possible and keep them there for as long as possible. Spurs’ new stadium was designed round this concept.

I like sitting on my big fat arse with a pint in my hand. Can't do that in the concourse.
If having a drink in one's seat was allowed (like at the rugby), I'd be inclined to get in early.
However, as things stand, I'll listen to Billy Bollocks in the casino and rock up just in time for WLADITT.

 

[MalcSB]

Can you also suggest that they put some sort of covered areas outside by the bars for when the weather is crap?

No, would discourage people from entering earlier.

 

[MalcSB]

Stella, bud I think.

Usually they have a bit of life

Bud is pisswater.

 

[SkyblueDad]

They have always struggled at Ricoh/CBS with large gates yet dare I say in their early days shitty Wasps with their free ticket joke had almost full houses for Munster & Leinster also Leicester Tigers coped well.

 

[wingy]

It's about the footprint really isn't it?
The fact is it's only two sides entry, and those are running across road's?

 

[Hiraeth]

Can't help but feel like the fans are the ones at fault for not arriving early enough and causing all of these queues.

Why aren't the fans taking advantage of the opportunities provided to help them arrive and get in earlier such as:

- The extra perimeter fencing around the ground encouraging longer routes to be taken when attempting to walk to a turnstile

- The incredible train service to Coventry Arena station which is surely the best service in the West Midlands to get fans straight to a ground on matchdays

- The double decker shuttle buses that efficiently take fans from the City Centre, Train Station and Pool Meadow directly to the ground without any other stops

- The large car parking exclusion zone maximising the distance some fans will walk to get to the turnstiles

- The extensive temporary road closures put in place before kick off to help fans to cross the A444 without bottlenecks and delays

- the opportunity to add matchday tickets to a plastic membership card for non-Season Ticket Holders for faster entry.

- the folding lines on printed tickets being in the wrong place so the printed tickets won't fit in the scanner when folded as instructed

- the lack of line markings / fencing outside turnstiles to help lead to orderly queues that doesn't just lead into the barriers placed without gaps on the way into the North Stand. This then leads into queues that block off or limit the ability of fans to move from left to right when the loudspeaker helpfully explains that the reason for the problems is fans using the wrong turnstiles when they follow the printed instructions and go to the turnstiles on their ticket

- the additional stewarding placed standing around the away fans area rather than being used to complete searches in pairs away from the turnstiles or assisting with scanning problems either at the turnstile or with handheld scanners.

The way a lot of our fans act they must think they are owed the right of admission for paying to get in and I think it's high time they apologised to the club and arena staff for the way in which attendances have increased and are continuing to increase which makes life so much more difficult for everyone.

I know it was 7 years ago but have any other clubs had to delay a kick off due to the inability of 11,672 fans to be able to enter a 32k-ish stadium for a FA Trophy Semi Final game?

Speaking of delayed kick offs - does the lack of delays to kick offs mean that the CBS Arena is the first venue in England to implement 'safe standing areas' during football matches that are located outside of the stadium bowl on the way into the turnstiles?

 

[MalcSB]

They have always struggled at Ricoh/CBS with large gates yet dare I say in their early days shitty Wasps with their free ticket joke had almost full houses for Munster & Leinster also Leicester Tigers coped well.

Probably because they could sit on their big fat Waspy arses with a pint in their hand before and during the match, so they turned up in plenty of time.

 

[MalcSB]

Can't help but feel like the fans are the ones at fault for not arriving early enough and causing all of these queues.

Why aren't the fans taking advantage of the opportunities provided to help them arrive and get in earlier such as:

- The extra perimeter fencing around the ground encouraging longer routes to be taken when attempting to walk to a turnstile

- The incredible train service to Coventry Arena station which is surely the best service in the West Midlands to get fans straight to a ground on matchdays

- The double decker shuttle buses that efficiently take fans from the City Centre, Train Station and Pool Meadow directly to the ground without any other stops

- The large car parking exclusion zone maximising the distance some fans will walk to get to the turnstiles

- The extensive temporary road closures put in place before kick off to help fans to cross the A444 without bottlenecks and delays

- the opportunity to add matchday tickets to a plastic membership card for non-Season Ticket Holders for faster entry.

- the folding lines on printed tickets being in the wrong place so the printed tickets won't fit in the scanner when folded as instructed

- the lack of line markings / fencing outside turnstiles to help lead to orderly queues that doesn't just lead into the barriers placed without gaps on the way into the North Stand. This then leads into queues that block off or limit the ability of fans to move from left to right when the loudspeaker helpfully explains that the reason for the problems is fans using the wrong turnstiles when they follow the printed instructions and go to the turnstiles on their ticket

- the additional stewarding placed standing around the away fans area rather than being used to complete searches in pairs away from the turnstiles or assisting with scanning problems either at the turnstile or with handheld scanners.

The way a lot of our fans act they must think they are owed the right of admission for paying to get in and I think it's high time they apologised to the club and arena staff for the way in which attendances have increased and are continuing to increase which makes life so much more difficult for everyone.

I know it was 7 years ago but have any other clubs had to delay a kick off due to the inability of 11,672 fans to be able to enter a 32k-ish stadium for a FA Trophy Semi Final game?

Speaking of delayed kick offs - does the lack of delays to kick offs mean that the CBS Arena is the first venue in England to implement 'safe standing areas' during football matches that are located outside of the stadium bowl on the way into the turnstiles?

Very well done.
Regular supporters know all about these fantastic initiatives and should plan their arrival time accordingly.

 

[wingy]

Very well done.
Regular supporters know all about these fantastic initiatives and should plan their arrival time accordingly.

Or someone else will?

 

[Mcbean]

They could do with more lean on shelves all around the concours so you can rest your pint on it and ponder the match or team selection - there is a shelf on one side but they are always full

 

[wingy]

Let's go the full hog and market it as a final chance to see football without VAR!

 

[thekidfromstrettoncamp]

The people turning up cannot in most cases get there early for night games.Unlike myself have not retired have work to to do and for many it's a case of getting there as soon as.The ways of entering the ground have got to be simplefied be it moving the checks away from the turnstiles and making them stop checks instead of everyone.Like most on here I haven't noticed anything being removed.I've even took a screwdriver in 1 night in an old coat.

 

[mmttww]

@Sky Blue Pete - has there ever been chat about a Park & Ride?

Could use schools around the city (1 x South, 1 x West, 1 x East).

Big car parks, normally empty at match times, built to take coaches.

 

[shmmeee]

I’ve long wondered why there’s not a park and ride from the memorial TBH.

 

[mmttww]

I’ve long wondered why there’s not a park and ride from the memorial TBH.

I though Parks at first, but not sure they'd want their car parks rammed with extra cars on the weekend.

 

[wingy]

I’ve long wondered why there’s not a park and ride from the memorial TBH.

About to introduce charges?

 

[itsabuzzard]

Can't help but feel like the fans are the ones at fault for not arriving early enough and causing all of these queues.

Why aren't the fans taking advantage of the opportunities provided to help them arrive and get in earlier such as:

- The extra perimeter fencing around the ground encouraging longer routes to be taken when attempting to walk to a turnstile

- The incredible train service to Coventry Arena station which is surely the best service in the West Midlands to get fans straight to a ground on matchdays

- The double decker shuttle buses that efficiently take fans from the City Centre, Train Station and Pool Meadow directly to the ground without any other stops

- The large car parking exclusion zone maximising the distance some fans will walk to get to the turnstiles

- The extensive temporary road closures put in place before kick off to help fans to cross the A444 without bottlenecks and delays

- the opportunity to add matchday tickets to a plastic membership card for non-Season Ticket Holders for faster entry.

- the folding lines on printed tickets being in the wrong place so the printed tickets won't fit in the scanner when folded as instructed

- the lack of line markings / fencing outside turnstiles to help lead to orderly queues that doesn't just lead into the barriers placed without gaps on the way into the North Stand. This then leads into queues that block off or limit the ability of fans to move from left to right when the loudspeaker helpfully explains that the reason for the problems is fans using the wrong turnstiles when they follow the printed instructions and go to the turnstiles on their ticket

- the additional stewarding placed standing around the away fans area rather than being used to complete searches in pairs away from the turnstiles or assisting with scanning problems either at the turnstile or with handheld scanners.

The way a lot of our fans act they must think they are owed the right of admission for paying to get in and I think it's high time they apologised to the club and arena staff for the way in which attendances have increased and are continuing to increase which makes life so much more difficult for everyone.

I know it was 7 years ago but have any other clubs had to delay a kick off due to the inability of 11,672 fans to be able to enter a 32k-ish stadium for a FA Trophy Semi Final game?

Speaking of delayed kick offs - does the lack of delays to kick offs mean that the CBS Arena is the first venue in England to implement 'safe standing areas' during football matches that are located outside of the stadium bowl on the way into the turnstiles?

Are you head of the club's PR team?

 

[thekidfromstrettoncamp]

Do think the ways of getting people to the ground should be reviewed in the summer and PUBLISHED. A bus running from the station on a loop would help.Mind you trains running to the area stop would be even better.The attendance has doubled in a few years and no thought has been put into transportation a far as i can see.

 

[wingy]

About to introduce charges?

Guess it's a consequence overall of cutting tax?