Did the idea of buying tickets on the day ever come off?

[les dynam]

I don't live anywhere near Brighton and would have to go past Falmer to get to the center of town. So yes it's a right pain in the arse. It's an hour out of my life that I don't need to lose. For the floating fan, actually no even just for the floating fan as I don't consider myself as a floating fan for a game I'm umming and arring about going to game having to fight my way into town only to have come all the way back again is probably enough of a reason order another pint and stay in the pub.

People are going to moaning like f*** once the honeymoon period is over and we're not selling out every week. Towards the end of last season I was chatting to a bloke who told me he used to go to the Goldstone back in the day but hadn't been to football for years. He said it'll be great when you get the new ground because getting a tickets for Withdean was a nightmare. Obviously it wasn't but my point is he still thought it was tricky to get tickets for Withdean because it was when we first moved back and it held 6k. If we are putting stupid and unnecessary obstacles in the way it's not going to encourage people to go and people tend to have long memories when they've had a bad experience.

fan of the year 2012!

 

[Alex Alex Dawson oo! oo!]

Are there actually any rules? Genuinely, I do not know.

If my memory is correct the location of sale points for tickets on matchday, as part of the stadium planning consent, were to be determined as part of the Transport Management Scheme. The TMS, and any subsequent amendments, require B&HCC approval.

 

[Storer 68]

An abject failure milord


Given the queues at brighton station on matshdays I would have thought it an overwhelming success. But is the problem that the rail companies don't have a method of recording travel other than a paper-based ticket, and all STH's now hold smart cards.

So at Withdean when all ticket holders were in possesion of a paper ticket adding a travel voucher was a simple process. And of course you couldn't buy a ticket without buying a travel voucher

Surely the obvious answer would be to have travel vouchers loaded on to the ST at the time/point of purchase and just slap them on readers at Falmer station or buses as they used, as we do in London with oyster cards. I understand that B&H buses has been looking very seriously at a simiar sustem for their fleet so surely the TV scheme just needs a re-vamp rather than scrapping entirely. A move to an e-voucher rather than a paper based system, which clearly is not working. My journey to the stadium is entirely by the train and there has NEVER been a check for vouchers either at Brighton station, Falmer Station or at the stadium. is that a fault of the club or the Train companies. ? In fact the only place where the voucher has been necessary has been to get into and out of my home station.

Obvioulsy a bit of up front expense for the club to organise but money seem to be no object nowadays

 

[Simster]

The logic behind this thinking is that not selling tickets on the day AT THE STADIUM discourages people travelling to games by unsustainable transport (ie by car). At Withdean, it meant that every ticket holder bought a travel voucher.

As a means to achieve any objective of this sort, the travel voucher scheme at Falmer is plainly an abject failure. If you buy a ticket three days before the game, there's no requirement to get a travel voucher.

I'd like to hear a convincing argument about why selling tickets at the Amex on the day for an undersubscribed game would lead to undesirable consequences. I can't think of one.

Incidentally ... it's not a planning condition, in itself. The planning condition is that there is a travel management plan in place. A rule about on the day ticket sales can be part of that plan.

That is interesting Ed, especially as IMO they need to address the whole voucher issue because it's not really working currently.

I think they are going to have to roll in travel voucher costs with the ticket price even that risks upsetting poor old Beach Hut. And eventually there needs to be a way to accommodate walk up trade. That is simply a statement of fact, or the club will suffer.

 

[Peter Grummit]

The logic behind this thinking is that not selling tickets on the day AT THE STADIUM discourages people travelling to games by unsustainable transport (ie by car). At Withdean, it meant that every ticket holder bought a travel voucher.

As a means to achieve any objective of this sort, the travel voucher scheme at Falmer is plainly an abject failure. If you buy a ticket three days before the game, there's no requirement to get a travel voucher.

I'd like to hear a convincing argument about why selling tickets at the Amex on the day for an undersubscribed game would lead to undesirable consequences. I can't think of one.

Incidentally ... it's not a planning condition, in itself. The planning condition is that there is a travel management plan in place. A rule about on the day ticket sales can be part of that plan.

Being positive, that ought to mean that a better 'voucher' system should make it easier for sustainable transport mode share to improve. Does anyone know what is planned (as part of the expanded stadium transport arrangements, or otherwise)? Loaded directly on the (ticket) smartcard would be the best solution, but relies on PT operators being able to 'read' the cards. This wouldn't be a solution for the extremely casual fan, but in time and with some promotion, it would be worth the club issuing smartcards to everyone who buys a ticket.

PG

 

[Lady Whistledown]

I don't really get why everyone says the travel voucher scheme is such a failure. I paid, what, £30 for a book of vouchers. The train fare to Falmer from where I live is about £6, so it's paid for itself within 5 matches. Bargain. Just because nobody checks the vouchers doesn't mean they're pointless, as some have suggested. The railway staff have a right to demand a ticket from any of us at any stage, and frankly I don't need the hassle of being caught without one, so was happy to pay in advance. I can't figure out why people are so bothered about the voucher thing.

 

[ROSM]

I can't figure out why people are so bothered about the voucher thing.

because I suspect so few people have bought them and so the club are currently losing money as they pay out to the travel companies on a perceived split but dont get the income in.

Away fans dont get them and then are not aware of the travel restrictions so turn up at the stadium and find they can park there or nearby

 

[Tony Meolas Loan Spell]

because I suspect so few people have bought them and so the club are currently losing money as they pay out to the travel companies on a perceived split but dont get the income in.

Away fans dont get them and then are not aware of the travel restrictions so turn up at the stadium and find they can park there or nearby

Yep agree. Sorry Edna but Im a little pissed off that I spent £30 on these vouchers (Im not arguing they are not a bargain because they are) and Im not begrudging the the club my £30 BUT lots of people are "fare dodging" and thats WRONG.

 

[Lord Bracknell]

An abject failure milord?

I said that the travel voucher scheme had been an abject failure as a mechanism to discourage driving to the stadium. The reason that people choose not to drive is that they perceive that car parking isn't physically available. They therefore turn to alternatives. A lot of those alternatives (like park & ride and some train travel - eg mine) can be used WITHOUT buying a travel voucher or paying.

 

[Arthur]

As Bozza says, you can order online up to 12 and then pick up at the Amex. Frankly, your repetitive ramblings will have taken you much longer than it would take to buy a ticket! Given that you have said you live a way away, you'd have to decide soon after noon that you were going anyway.

PG

I live about an hour away so I could quite easily be sitting in my local tomorrow lunch time at 2 and think you know what I fancy going to football after all, jump in my wagon and still make kick off.

I wonder if you will still think my "repetitive ramblings" are still that in a couple of years if we've got a half full stadium with an even shiter atmosphere than currently?

Ask FPC. Without all of their ridiculous scare-mongering we wouldn't have needed to make it so bloody difficult to sell tickets on the day in order to assist the planning application.

Now we're in The Amex with most things working well, it must be time to say bollocks to FPC, talk to B&H Council and get the rules relaxed?

Quite agree, we should have done it at Withdean.

The logic behind this thinking is that not selling tickets on the day AT THE STADIUM discourages people travelling to games by unsustainable transport (ie by car). At Withdean, it meant that every ticket holder bought a travel voucher.

As a means to achieve any objective of this sort, the travel voucher scheme at Falmer is plainly an abject failure. If you buy a ticket three days before the game, there's no requirement to get a travel voucher.

I'd like to hear a convincing argument about why selling tickets at the Amex on the day for an undersubscribed game would lead to undesirable consequences. I can't think of one.

Incidentally ... it's not a planning condition, in itself. The planning condition is that there is a travel management plan in place. A rule about on the day ticket sales can be part of that plan.

For once we agree on something. People know (or they soon will do) there is no where to park so regardless of whether they drive or not surely it's a null and void point? As you say I could be a season ticket holder and not have the travel vouchers.

What would happen if the club did start selling tickets from the ground on a matchday?

 

[Brovion]

fan of the year 2012!

Surely that's the point though? He's not fan of the year - and neither am I. We're Brighton fans who want to see our team, not superfans who will crawl over broken glass to watch a JPT game. Some of the options he's been offered (stay on the train, walk to the shop, go back on the train) are, from a customer relations point of view, as pathetic and laughable as they are impractical. If that was the only option I'd say "Naa, can't be arsed", and stay in and watch Soccer Saturday instead.

It's not a problem at the moment, but if (when?) the interest slackens and the empty seats are due to unsold tickets rather than no-shows then this problem will rear it's head again. The superfans might despise us more casual, non-STH fans - but you'll need us.

 

[Storer 68]

I don't really get why everyone says the travel voucher scheme is such a failure. I paid, what, £30 for a book of vouchers. The train fare to Falmer from where I live is about £6, so it's paid for itself within 5 matches. Bargain. Just because nobody checks the vouchers doesn't mean they're pointless, as some have suggested. The railway staff have a right to demand a ticket from any of us at any stage, and frankly I don't need the hassle of being caught without one, so was happy to pay in advance. I can't figure out why people are so bothered about the voucher thing.

absolutely.

But one object of the scheme is to prove now sustainable the travel scheme is. An easy way of doing this is to count the vouchers used rather than count the vouchers sold.

But the bargain argument is absoluitely spot on.

 

[Storer 68]

Surely that's the point though? He's not fan of the year - and neither am I. We're Brighton fans who want to see our team, not superfans who will crawl over broken glass to watch a JPT game. Some of the options he's been offered (stay on the train, walk to the shop, go back on the train) are, from a customer relations point of view, as pathetic and laughable as they are impractical. If that was the only option I'd say "Naa, can't be arsed", and stay in and watch Soccer Saturday instead.

It's not a problem at the moment, but if (when?) the interest slackens and the empty seats are due to unsold tickets rather than no-shows then this problem will rear it's head again. The superfans might despise us more casual, non-STH fans - but you'll need us.

I don't see what is pathetic and laughable about the solution. It seems quite sensible and well thought out to me. OK a bit inconvenient for those coimng from the east of the county but that's life. The Goldstone was never convenient for some people and the club then had no thoughts about making it easy for people to come to games other than selling them a ticket.
perhsaps we should be gratefulk that at least our club offers the option of subsidised travel, plenty of clubs don't.

I'm sorry but the days of waking up and deciding to go to a game are now finished. All that is required is a bit of forethought.

 

[Brovion]

I don't really get why everyone says the travel voucher scheme is such a failure. I paid, what, £30 for a book of vouchers. The train fare to Falmer from where I live is about £6, so it's paid for itself within 5 matches. Bargain. Just because nobody checks the vouchers doesn't mean they're pointless, as some have suggested. The railway staff have a right to demand a ticket from any of us at any stage, and frankly I don't need the hassle of being caught without one, so was happy to pay in advance. I can't figure out why people are so bothered about the voucher thing.

It's a failure from the point of view of away fans who can't use the P&R (as they haven't got a voucher), and also for casual fans who have to buy a voucher as well as a ticket. It hasn't really affected me as rather than using the bus as I'd planned I go by private car instead (dropped of and picked up). I don't think that's helping the 'sustainable transport' argument though.

 

[Publius Ovidius]

It's a failure from the point of view of away fans who can't use the P&R (as they haven't got a voucher), and also for casual fans who have to buy a voucher as well as a ticket. It hasn't really affected me as rather than using the bus as I'd planned I go by private car instead (dropped of and picked up). I don't think that's helping the 'sustainable transport' argument though.

so are away fans expected to park whereever they can? I thought they did use the P&R

 

[Brovion]

I don't see what is pathetic and laughable about the solution. It seems quite sensible and well thought out to me. OK a bit inconvenient for those coimng from the east of the county but that's life. The Goldstone was never convenient for some people and the club then had no thoughts about making it easy for people to come to games other than selling them a ticket. I'm sorry but the days of waking up and deciding to go to a game are now finished. All that is required is a bit of forethought.

Actually your post demonstrates my point quite nicely. I would class you, with respect, as a 'superfan' and I'm sure if you weren't an STH you'd think nothing of the inconvenience or the forethought required in order to get a ticket. Not everybody thinks the same as you.

And the Goldstone was NOT inconvenient. All you had to do was get your arse down there.

 

[Was not Was]

I don't really get why everyone says the travel voucher scheme is such a failure. I paid, what, £30 for a book of vouchers. The train fare to Falmer from where I live is about £6, so it's paid for itself within 5 matches. Bargain. Just because nobody checks the vouchers doesn't mean they're pointless, as some have suggested. The railway staff have a right to demand a ticket from any of us at any stage, and frankly I don't need the hassle of being caught without one, so was happy to pay in advance. I can't figure out why people are so bothered about the voucher thing.

That's fine, this season. But next season, it's possible that lots of STHs will make the rational decision that, as tickets never get checked, they won't bother buying the vouchers. The vast majority are honest and wouldn't fare dodge. But if it looks like a free service and feels like a free service, then why not treat it as a free service?

 

[Arthur]

I'm sorry but the days of waking up and deciding to go to a game are now finished. All that is required is a bit of forethought.

But they aren't though. I've gone to Leicester, Millwall and Coventry and paid on the day this season alone.

 

[Bwian]

Quite agree, we should have done it at Withdean.

Might have made the planning application even harder than it was though.

 

[Brovion]

so are away fans expected to park whereever they can? I thought they did use the P&R

But if they haven't got a voucher how can they get on the bus? And if they're going to allow away fans on without vouchers surely that's unfair on home fans who turn up at the P&R sites without vouchers?