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Officially it’s called “New Stadium”, we all refer to it as White Rock but either way we have to get there to watch the matches and the unveiling of the Stadium travel plan is the way that we have to go.
And centrally to that plan are three new Park and Ride schemes at County Hall, the recreation ground and Swansea Vale that will offer frequent bus services to take fans to and from matches at the Swans new home.
The travel plan which was pieced together by Swansea Council, the Stadium Management Company, local police and First Cymru after thousands of hours of consultation and analysis of other new stadia including St Mary’s in Southampton and the Madejski Stadium in Reading.
The new park and ride schemes will be in operation for the first game at the stadium – Fulham on July 23 and in addition to these three venues, First Cymru will also offer extended services from the bus station at the Quadrant to White Rock. The bus station will also service fans arriving by rail as well as there being extra services from Neath for Ospreys matches.
In addition to this, the travel plan also gives supporters the option of parking and the park and ride facilities and walking to the stadium as well as using the cycle racks at the stadium and utilising the cycle route.
Gerald Clement, Swansea Council Cabinet Member for culture said “We have been working closely with the police, First Cymru and other partners to provide a travel plan that ensures fans can arrive and leave as quickly and easily as possible. The plan more than caters for the demands of the stadium, even at full capacity, if the fans follow it.
“Local residents will be protected from disruption on match days by extensive parking restrictions on their streets which will be strictly enforced.”
Inspector Bill John from Swansea police added “We have conducted a large amount of research and consultation in the planning for the operational policing response to the opening of the new stadium. We have considered some of the traffic management plans for grounds in Reading and Southampton in our planning processes.
“Nevertheless, we do need fans to co-operate with us and use the specified park and ride sites or public transport to get to and from the game. This will help us greatly in ensuring that everyone has a safe and enjoyable day out.
“Over the coming months we will also be utilising police helicopters and traffic analysis experts to see if we can improve the system even further.”
Parking at the stadium will only be available for players, media, disabled supporters and stadium staff. Fans will not be allowed to park in the Morfa retail park or residential areas next to the ground. Buses will run from the park and ride facilities every few minutes.
Parking at Swansea Vale will allow for around 2,500 cars and will be serviced by a fleet of 40 buses providing a free ride to the stadium. Car Parking charges will be £5.00
County Hall has around 400 spaces and will be serviced by 7 buses. Parking is free but there will be a charge of £2 for adults and 50p for under 16s for the buses.
The recreation ground has 800 spaces and will be serviced by 20 buses. Parking is again free but charges will be levied as above for the buses.
There will also be an overspill park and ride site at the University for 1,100 spaces with parking free and bus charges as above.
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