This is the original forum of the Bristol Railway Archive that existed between 2003 and 2013. I finally rescued it after it seemed unrecoverable after a large crash. I have made it available for viewing. It is locked, all posts to the new version please!
stationcat wrote: When fgw began ripping off passengers with parking fees the number of cars parking in residential areas around Nailsea & Backwell was quite noticeable, it's high time this grubby little bus company learned the meaning of the word "enough".
The car park at Nailsea & Backwell is council operated. FGW have no control over the parking fees at this location. Actually, as far as I am aware, the council are trying to secure extra land to increase the size of the car park as it is always full, if not overflowing, which would kind of suggest that rail passengers were not put off by the parking fees, but are parking in residential areas due to a lack of space.
With regard to Patchway, I don't actually recall ever seeing anyone parked there, other than the occasional rail enthusiast sat in their car. The car park is always empty, so I'm not entirely certain who all these 'furious' passengers are...
well you wouldn't have to pay if you were sat in your car - leaving someone in the driving seat is the established method of avoiding the parking meter man...
stationcat wrote: When fgw began ripping off passengers with parking fees the number of cars parking in residential areas around Nailsea & Backwell was quite noticeable, it's high time this grubby little bus company learned the meaning of the word "enough".
The car park at Nailsea & Backwell is council operated. FGW have no control over the parking fees at this location. Actually, as far as I am aware, the council are trying to secure extra land to increase the size of the car park as it is always full, if not overflowing, which would kind of suggest that rail passengers were not put off by the parking fees, but are parking in residential areas due to a lack of space.
With ...
The story of the Nailsea & Backwell station car park is quite interesting, but I cannot agree with the local council spending rate payers cash on a car park to benefit a private railway company!
In fact, the car park was supposed to have been transferred to the station operator but this never happened due to changes within the industry and it remains "owned" by North Somerset council.
It is currently free of charge to park there.
When Wessex started to charge at Yatton, parking along side roads became a real pain and still is. Some drivers drove to Backwell to obtain continued free parking.
For an example of where the introduction of a parking fee has dramatically reduced the patronage of a car park, just look at Frome. Frome had a tiny car park, which was always overflowing, so FGW leased additional land and tripled the size of the car park. This quickly filled up too. Last year a fee was introduced and overnight the car park emptied, and has pretty much remained empty ever since. However, passengers numbers have not dropped so I guess either: people are leaving their cars at home and walking to the station (which is good for everyone), or they are finding somewhere else to park (not so good for anyone), or the cars parked at Frome station were never those belonging to rail passengers in the first place!
the void wrote:For an example of where the introduction of a parking fee has dramatically reduced the patronage of a car park, just look at Frome.
Going a bit off topic, this isn't just seen at railway stations.
Being strapped for cash a few years ago, North Wiltshire District Council scrapped its "first hour free parking" policy at its car parks. The result was an emtying of the car parks and the businesses in town centres got up in arms because it was costing them trade.
The problem of course was that those who were parking for less than an hour were more likely to go to an out of town shopping mall and park for free. Thois who were staying for more than an hour usually have some other business to attend to in the town centre.
