Albion train travel on agenda (From The Argus)

The club should pay to extend the platforms at Falmer station so 12 coach trains can be accommodated. The trains can then be provided by the rail company. The Brighton Main line 2 project should also go ahead as a much needed infrastructure project and will have benefits far beyond the needs of Albion fans and visitors. The government should be having a serious look at this.

Wouldn't worry, after next year when you finish near the bottom or get relegated the JCL's wont renew their ST's and they'll be playing in an half empty stadium.

I cannot believe the question of who pays for the Falmer Station improvements needs to be debated. Network Rail own the station, they should foot the bill for bringing it up to code. It's a station that's getting busier, so if they want to take advantage of increasing demand (revenue), then they should pay for the required upgrades. Asking the club to contribute would be like Ry*nair asking Gatwick Airport to pay for 747's to replace 737's because they wanted to take advantage of increasing demand on a particular route, nonsensical! The Station should be extented, longer trains should run in the hours leading up to and after games, but Brighton should not pay a penny towards it!

Mart2a wrote:
Wouldn't worry, after next year when you finish near the bottom or get relegated the JCL's wont renew their ST's and they'll be playing in an half empty stadium.

Quite a nice day, too many clouds for my liking but at least it isn't snowing.

Mart2a wrote:
Wouldn't worry, after next year when you finish near the bottom or get relegated the JCL's wont renew their ST's and they'll be playing in an half empty stadium.

That reminds me, I must repair my cuckoo clock.

Alan G Skinner wrote:
I cannot believe the question of who pays for the Falmer Station improvements needs to be debated. Network Rail own the station, they should foot the bill for bringing it up to code. It's a station that's getting busier, so if they want to take advantage of increasing demand (revenue), then they should pay for the required upgrades. Asking the club to contribute would be like Ry*nair asking Gatwick Airport to pay for 747's to replace 737's because they wanted to take advantage of increasing demand on a particular route, nonsensical! The Station should be extented, longer trains should run in the hours leading up to and after games, but Brighton should not pay a penny towards it!

Stations are expensive and the extra revenue would be limited to home match days so it remains to be seen whether this is a economically worthwhile scheme for the train company without a contribution from the football club and/or local authority.

Would be a totally different situation if these thousands of people all required train access on a daily basis and it would be clear cut that the train company would pay.

Mart2a wrote:
Wouldn't worry, after next year when you finish near the bottom or get relegated the JCL's wont renew their ST's and they'll be playing in an half empty stadium.

And I expect that you are one of those who said that the stadium would never be built or that they would be lucky to get gates of 5,000. Well if anyone ever had any doubt the atmosphere on Saturday showed beyond any doubt that this is a club on the up even if the journey may have it's up's and down's. I suspect that what you know about football could be written on the proverbial postage stamp.

Alan G Skinner wrote:
I cannot believe the question of who pays for the Falmer Station improvements needs to be debated. Network Rail own the station, they should foot the bill for bringing it up to code. It's a station that's getting busier, so if they want to take advantage of increasing demand (revenue), then they should pay for the required upgrades. Asking the club to contribute would be like Ry*nair asking Gatwick Airport to pay for 747's to replace 737's because they wanted to take advantage of increasing demand on a particular route, nonsensical! The Station should be extented, longer trains should run in the hours leading up to and after games, but Brighton should not pay a penny towards it!

If Tesco built a mega store out in the sticks would you expect the council to pay for the road to be upgraded to a motorway just to help a private company with their customers?

Why should the railway pay? Loads of Albion fans travel to games without paying or have anyone check whether they have tickets. All these non-payers, combined with the extra costs of laying on longer trains, must mean that the railway is losing a fortune every time there's a game.

Jack Hughes wrote:
Why should the railway pay? Loads of Albion fans travel to games without paying or have anyone check whether they have tickets. All these non-payers, combined with the extra costs of laying on longer trains, must mean that the railway is losing a fortune every time there's a game.

just longer and more regular trains is needed. and some turnstiles. easy.

Alan G Skinner wrote:
I cannot believe the question of who pays for the Falmer Station improvements needs to be debated. Network Rail own the station, they should foot the bill for bringing it up to code. It's a station that's getting busier, so if they want to take advantage of increasing demand (revenue), then they should pay for the required upgrades. Asking the club to contribute would be like Ry*nair asking Gatwick Airport to pay for 747's to replace 737's because they wanted to take advantage of increasing demand on a particular route, nonsensical! The Station should be extented, longer trains should run in the hours leading up to and after games, but Brighton should not pay a penny towards it!

Im an Albion season ticket holder and even I couldnt support that view.

If the club want the extra seating they are going to have to pay for infrastructure improvements. That's how it works. If the proposals also fit with something Network Rail wants to do then the costs can be shared which is good all round. You will never get 30,000 in and out of Falmer without some delay and queuing, but its working pretty well so far and its a million times better than Withdean and even the hallowed Goldstone.

Personally I think the congestion on the A27 on match days needs priority over trains and additional seating

The stadium draws crowds on a seasonal basis, once a fortnight. It inconveniences the ordinary road and rail traveller on those occasions. Of course the club should pay for the improvements to the station.

This should also be accompanied by a strict enforcement of the use of sustainable transport where possible, as per the planning permission. The stadium already has more parking spaces than it should have, according to the SoS's decision letter.

If the fans have to queue for ages, or the use of train, bus and park & ride inconveniences them so be it.

I would prefer Southern laying on extra trains that don't stop at Falmer to save having to deal with thousands of football supporting idiots on home match days when trying somewhere beyond Falmer from Brighton

OP8 wrote:
I would prefer Southern laying on extra trains that don't stop at Falmer to save having to deal with thousands of football supporting idiots on home match days when trying somewhere beyond Falmer from Brighton

As long as the minority (of one) is alright then!
I'm a season ticket holder & I believe that the club should pay for the majority of the cost. Lets not forget the additional revenue that these fans will bring both to the club and the area.