Farrel Doherty said his drive is sometimes blocked during match days[/caption]
RESIDENTS have revealed it’s a nightmare living next to a Premier League stadium with horrendous traffic and nowhere to park.
But long-awaited plans to expand the stadium have now been given the green light leaving some locals furious.
Residents have revealed it’s a nightmare living next to a Premier League stadium[/caption]
Long-awaited plans to expand Nottingham Forest’s stadium have been approved[/caption]
Farrel Doherty said his drive is sometimes blocked during match days[/caption]
After years in the works, Nottingham Forest’s plans to expand their City Ground stadium have been approved.
Forest will start progressing plans to demolish and rebuild the Peter Taylor Stand once all conditions have been met.
The plans will increase the stadium’s capacity by 5,000 and the decision has been warmly welcomed by the Premier League club’s fans.
But councillors and residents have pointed out two major problems that will become “significantly worse” – parking and traffic.
One 73-year-old told NottinghamshireLive that she felt “residents were being forgotten” and that parking was a “nightmare” when there’s a match on.
She said: “I’m very disappointed that nothing has been allocated for residents with parking.”
“Once or twice we’ve had people blocking our drive and it’s sometimes difficult to get the cars out,” said Farrel Doherty who moved to the area 22 years ago.
“It’ll push more traffic onto these roads – we often have cars parked on the double yellows which can make it difficult to get through.”
Doherty added that the issue has “definitely got worse, especially over the last few seasons”.
A Labour councillor also also said that residents are “at their wits end” and that “a real opportunity” is being missed to create a sporting quarter.
But other residents said they have no problem with match day parking as some are “accustomed to it” with others admitting it’s “part and parcel of living here.”
The congestion problem is likely to be made worse, however, as initial approval has been granted for plans to build a block of up to 170 apartments next to the rebuilt stand.
This is still subject to further approval pending other details the club will have to provide to the council in the near future.
But the current 171 parking spaces at the front of the stand would be reduced to just 35 under the redevelopment plan.
It’s likely to make existing parking and traffic issues in surrounding areas, such as West Bridgford, Lady Bay and The Meadows, even worse.
Nottingham Forest’s own transport assessment concluded that the developments, combined with the loss of car parking, will create demand for an additional 1,416 spaces.
To address concerns, the club is debating measures such as including a map of walking routes and public transport modes being printed on the back of tickets.
They say they are also considering temporary road closures at the end of matches to ensure pedestrian safety, particularly on Lady Bay Bridge.
Schemes for staff including bus taster tickets and car club schemes are also under consideration.
The club have also agreed to pay £2.9 million to go toward local improvements.
This includes £1m for improving bus services and hundreds of thousands for cycling access, match day parking permits and safety improvements to the Cattle Market Junction.
But a local councillor has said that it’s nowhere near enough and will not “fully solve the problem”.
A spokesperson from Nottinghamshire County Council said: “The County Council is aware of the issues facing many residents who live in the vicinity of the sports venues and the potential impact the proposed increase in capacity of the City Ground is likely to have on the number of car trips to the area.
“The County Council has therefore worked with the football club and Rushcliffe Borough Council through the planning process to secure funding that will enable the implementation of permit schemes in the vicinity, subject to further detailed design and the necessary consultations.”
The spokesperson added: “The County Council is committed to working with the local community to help identify the priorities for how this funding will be spent, which may cover the cost of a parking review and the implementation of a co-ordinated set of parking measures.
“Additionally, the Council has secured funding for a number of transport measures aimed at reducing the overall impacts traffic of the ground as whole.
“These include enhanced bus services on match days, extended traffic management measures, improvements to walking and cycling routes, and electronic travel signage.
“Forest will also be required to prepare and implement a Sustainable Travel Plan prior to completion of the new stand.”
A Rushcliffe Borough Council spokesperson said: “Matters around highway safety and impacts upon traffic and parking on surrounding streets were considered as part of the determination of the planning application, which was approved at planning committee on June 26.
“As part of this application, highway authorities at both Nottingham City Council and Nottinghamshire County Council were consultees and raised no objection to the plans put forward by Nottingham Forest Football Club, which sought to mitigate the impact of the proposed redevelopment works.
“However, in recognition of concerns about this topic being raised at planning committee, planning committee members requested the addition of an advisory note, with the recommendation that Nottingham Forest Football Club set up a Community Liaison Group to provide further input into an updated Travel Plan focused on encouraging sustainable travel and reducing single-occupancy vehicles.”
