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| Newcastle United tops survey of matchday travel among football fans | Newcastle United tops survey of matchday travel among football fans |
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| Manchester United may have bagged the Premier League title, but Old Trafford is relegation fodder when it comes to fans' transport needs according to research. | Manchester United may have bagged the Premier League title, but Old Trafford is relegation fodder when it comes to fans' transport needs according to research. |
| Newcastle United is the clear champion when it comes to transport options, according to a study of football fans' journeys published on Tuesday and carried out by the Campaign for Better Transport and the Football Supporters' Federation (FSF). Season ticket holders at the club can buy a £10 matchday travel ticket for Tyne and Wear that covers them for every home game of the season at their St James' Park ground. | Newcastle United is the clear champion when it comes to transport options, according to a study of football fans' journeys published on Tuesday and carried out by the Campaign for Better Transport and the Football Supporters' Federation (FSF). Season ticket holders at the club can buy a £10 matchday travel ticket for Tyne and Wear that covers them for every home game of the season at their St James' Park ground. |
| Researchers surveyed fans and supporters' clubs, and assessed travel information and travel planning provided by clubs. | Researchers surveyed fans and supporters' clubs, and assessed travel information and travel planning provided by clubs. |
| The report, Door to Turnstile, reveals that while fans often want to leave their cars at home they are prevented from doing so by poor public transport provision. Instead they are regularly "condemned to a weekly pattern of expensive parking and endless traffic jams." | The report, Door to Turnstile, reveals that while fans often want to leave their cars at home they are prevented from doing so by poor public transport provision. Instead they are regularly "condemned to a weekly pattern of expensive parking and endless traffic jams." |
| The government is urged to take the lead by setting up free public transport with match tickets – along the lines of the popular and well-used KombiTicket in Germany – and individual clubs should routinely publish travel plans that include proposals for new facilities to improve access by walking and cycling as well as clear information about getting to the ground without a car. Transport operators should investigate a national football supporters' railcard with more flexible conditions, the report recommends. | The government is urged to take the lead by setting up free public transport with match tickets – along the lines of the popular and well-used KombiTicket in Germany – and individual clubs should routinely publish travel plans that include proposals for new facilities to improve access by walking and cycling as well as clear information about getting to the ground without a car. Transport operators should investigate a national football supporters' railcard with more flexible conditions, the report recommends. |
| Manchester United's Old Trafford ground comes 18th in the survey of 20 Premier League clubs and is described as "a major ground served mainly by low-capacity public transport, travel planning nearly a decade out of date and without safe walking or cycling routes." | Manchester United's Old Trafford ground comes 18th in the survey of 20 Premier League clubs and is described as "a major ground served mainly by low-capacity public transport, travel planning nearly a decade out of date and without safe walking or cycling routes." |
| Bottom of the pile is Reading's Madejski stadium: "comfortably the least accessible ground in this year's Premier League – out of town and virtually unreachable by regular public transport." And languishing at 19th is Queen's Park Rangers' ground, Loftus Road, where "despite London's extensive public transport, QPR have no coherent travel plan and offer poor information on how to get to Loftus Road | Bottom of the pile is Reading's Madejski stadium: "comfortably the least accessible ground in this year's Premier League – out of town and virtually unreachable by regular public transport." And languishing at 19th is Queen's Park Rangers' ground, Loftus Road, where "despite London's extensive public transport, QPR have no coherent travel plan and offer poor information on how to get to Loftus Road |
| Fans of Arsenal, in second place in the survey, make full use of good public transport links at the club's Emirates stadium, where the percentage of fans arriving by car has been reduced from 30% to 10% since moving from their old ground. And in third place, improvements to Fulham's Craven Cottage have led to a high proportion of supporters combining public transport with walking to the ground. | Fans of Arsenal, in second place in the survey, make full use of good public transport links at the club's Emirates stadium, where the percentage of fans arriving by car has been reduced from 30% to 10% since moving from their old ground. And in third place, improvements to Fulham's Craven Cottage have led to a high proportion of supporters combining public transport with walking to the ground. |
| Other key findings from the fans' survey include: 23% of fans spend more on travel than they do on a match ticket; fans travelling by train spend the most followed by lone drivers (most fans share lifts to games), with those travelling by bus spending the least; the average fan spends £55 on a match day with £13 going on travel, while train travellers spend £74, with £26 of this spent getting to the game. | Other key findings from the fans' survey include: 23% of fans spend more on travel than they do on a match ticket; fans travelling by train spend the most followed by lone drivers (most fans share lifts to games), with those travelling by bus spending the least; the average fan spends £55 on a match day with £13 going on travel, while train travellers spend £74, with £26 of this spent getting to the game. |
| Malcolm Clark, chair of the Football Supporters' Federation said: "Football's loyal supporters deserve more help to leave their cars at home and enjoy the day without hassle. | Malcolm Clark, chair of the Football Supporters' Federation said: "Football's loyal supporters deserve more help to leave their cars at home and enjoy the day without hassle. |
| "Making matchday travel more convenient, pleasant and affordable would benefit everyone involved in football, and we hope to see these ideas employed more widely in future." | "Making matchday travel more convenient, pleasant and affordable would benefit everyone involved in football, and we hope to see these ideas employed more widely in future." |
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