Istanbul CL Final chaos | City Matters statement (p 133)

Bluemanc100 said:
Apart from the result I think that Porto was a much better experience.. That’s purely because of the ridiculous stadium location this year… In Porto we were drinking by the river until mid to late afternoon then an easy (compared to the fiasco in Istanbul) trip to the ground..
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I agree Porto was much better, but the crowd was much smaller due to Covid. The main advantage was that the stadium wasn't f'ing miles from the city centre and the shuttle bus drivers knew where they were going.
It also helped that the stadium staff and security looked like they'd had more than 30 seconds training, and the surrounding area didn't look like a building site.
 
Could they build a stadium stop on the goods line that runs north of the stadium, and would it be possible to run passenger services, or would the line need an upgrade?
 
Northerndave said:
And that's the short version of that queue as I was in it for 2hrs, at one point the queue snaked back on itself, got to the bit where the disney style queuing started at about 9.45pm and took the decision to sack it off as there was no way I was missing the players coming out or the start of the game.

Instead of experiencing the build up in our seats, we were stood in a bloody queue and couldn't even get anything.

Thanks UEFA you c*nts.
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Yeah I took that pic just before half time
 
East Level 2 said:
Could they build a stadium stop on the goods line that runs north of the stadium, and would it be possible to run passenger services, or would the line need an upgrade?
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Anything could be built if someone provides the money. But even then there are huge logistical reasons for why it probably won’t happen.
 
Alex - City Matters said:
Sorry for the delay in getting back to you. Weirdly enough, I lost access to my City Matters account shortly after I posted it publicly. Only just sorted it.

The club came back to me with a somewhat positive reply to the report, without really addressing the parts that related to themselves. We are meeting with them tomorrow (a wider meeting, touching upon the group's governance for example) and we have reiterated that we would like them to comment publicly and improve the areas that related to the club. We would also like to see the evidence that they submitted to the UEFA independent of my report. Presuming that doesn't happen (and I don't hold out much hope), then we will start to ramp up some of the other avenues that we have used to publicise the issues faced in Istanbul and the report.

One of the positive aspects from the club is that they passed on the report to UEFA. As reported in the MEN, UEFA have agreed to meet with the club over the issues. I think that at least me and the City Matters chair will be attending that meeting.

As some have mentioned on here, I am in the process of asking local politicians to raise the matter. I would have done this sooner had it not been for my technology issues recently. Having experience of local and national politics myself, I will probably be able to liaise with Lucy Powell as my MP (quite helpfully she is Shadow Secretary of Culture, Media and Sports) but I may need others to do so with other local politicians.

In short, that was a long way of saying that there has been some limited progress with this. To be honest, that isn't unexpected given the limited standing of City Matters and the approach to fan welfare by too many of the governing bodies. However, having been in Istanbul and hearing so much from supporters, this isn't something I intend to let just wither away.
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Thanks for pursuing this on behalf of all of us that had to experience that shit show. My own experience was not too different to those who submitted reports and I'm glad someone is doing something about exposing it.
 
Citizen of Legoland said:
Anything could be built if someone provides the money. But even then there are huge logistical reasons for why it probably won’t happen.
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There is (or was) an old station, I think it was called Park, down Briscoe Lane, so it might be possible to reopen that at a lower cost. Or build something new when they demolish the gas works site.
Reopening Park station was considered before the Commonwealth Games so it might not require too much work.
 
East Level 2 said:
I agree Porto was much better, but the crowd was much smaller due to Covid. The main advantage was that the stadium wasn't f'ing miles from the city centre and the shuttle bus drivers knew where they were going.
It also helped that the stadium staff and security looked like they'd had more than 30 seconds training, and the surrounding area didn't look like a building site.
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The only hairy moment for me was being with some of the lads I’d met (I went to Porto alone) then getting split up at the metro station and ending up on the Chelsea tram … to be fair they were fine.. I’d been for a nightcap on the Friday night at an Italian Indian gaff (honestly) across from my Air BnB that had a large table of Chelsea fans at it.. pretty pissed.. I got a little sarcasm at first as I was wearing a City Mercer top but then spent a good few hours chatting football and having a good laugh.. They never let me put my hand in my pocket once.. The ironic thing was that none of them thought they had a chance of winning the game ..

74CE31D4-1A9B-4F9E-8638-6181867C432C.jpeg
 
Gray said:
I still think a Monorail would be the best option, add something to the City as well.
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Just needs the Piccadilly rail link via the disused viaduct in Ardwick reinstating and a new station near the Athletics stadium. There would then be direct links to both Piccadilly and Victoria. Having the new arena there should be sufficient to justify it along with the increased capacity of the stadium. That would ease the congested Metrolink and buses.
 
west didsblue said:
Just needs the Piccadilly rail link via the disused viaduct in Ardwick reinstating and a new station near the Athletics stadium. There would then be direct links to both Piccadilly and Victoria. Having the new arena there should be sufficient to justify it along with the increased capacity of the stadium. That would ease the congested Metrolink and buses.
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Got a spare £2billion?
 
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west didsblue said:
I’m talking about a half mile long disused viaduct not HS2
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HS2 is going right through where that viaduct is, so you’ll need another solution. Even if you did rebuild it, why would people get on a train service at Piccadilly to go 2 miles when it would be quicker to walk or use the tram? Trains would be limited to every 20mins or so, it just doesn’t seem a solution. They looked at rebuilding the viaduct for Newcastle/Leeds trains before doing the Ordsall Curve but ruled it out because it doesn’t allow onward travel to the airport whereas the Ordsall route does.

Headbolt Lane station at Kirkby is costing £80M and that’s a pretty simple station on a straight line track. Train infrastructure is costly.

If it was me I’d look at re-building Miles Platting station on the Victoria-Leeds/Newcastle line to use existing services. Probably not enough footfall coming that way for football but reckon the new arena will pull loads from that way. The line by the side of the athletic stadium might have enough footfall for a stadium if a service could be set up on it. Wigan to Sheffield via Victoria perhaps?
 
Monorail style cycling loop, with pods for wind and rain. Each pod could have Etihad logos on. Oh look, a nice nature-loving airline... and a green way for fans to get to and from City and the city
 
Citizen of Legoland said:
HS2 is going right through where that viaduct is, so you’ll need another solution. Even if you did rebuild it, why would people get on a train service at Piccadilly to go 2 miles when it would be quicker to walk or use the tram? Trains would be limited to every 20mins or so, it just doesn’t seem a solution. They looked at rebuilding the viaduct for Newcastle/Leeds trains before doing the Ordsall Curve but ruled it out because it doesn’t allow onward travel to the airport whereas the Ordsall route does.

Headbolt Lane station at Kirkby is costing £80M and that’s a pretty simple station on a straight line track. Train infrastructure is costly.

If it was me I’d look at re-building Miles Platting station on the Victoria-Leeds/Newcastle line to use existing services. Probably not enough footfall coming that way for football but reckon the new arena will pull loads from that way. The line by the side of the athletic stadium might have enough footfall for a stadium if a service could be set up on it. Wigan to Sheffield via Victoria perhaps?
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Miles Platting? That's a trek.
Park Station just up from the fire station / abbatoir is the perfect solution
 
Mad Eyed Screamer said:
Miles Platting? That's a trek.
Park Station just up from the fire station / abbatoir is the perfect solution
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1.7km vs 1.2km. I agree it’s not ideal but Park station is on the wrong line so not perfect. No point spending hundreds of millions for a station on a line that goes to Ashton when there’s already public transport (tram) doing that.

Probably neither will happen anyway.
 
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Frankie lad said:
Remember when we tipped up at Maine road and paid at the gate or they ripped the slip out of your season and in you went.
The whole Champions League final was overkill from the two apps you had to put on your phone onwards.
Being told to relinquish your water on arriving at the fanzone set the tone for he entire day.
Yes…still the best 6 days of my life but the day I was concerned about, match day, was every bit as messed up as my worst imaginings.
Looking back I would have played it very differently like going up early on the Metro and finding a local bar but worries about trouble and buying into this you must do this you must do that orders made me play it as instructed.I rushed off after the whistle to get a bus and again mistake…but then hindsight and all that.
Shopping in the Grand Bazaar days after the game many shop owners were at the game and had no stories of transport or food issues…They supported neither club but had main stand seats and thought it was a great day out.
I hate to complain when I was truly privileged to be there but * me what a * mess.
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A local bar? Near the stadium?
 
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