Queues

[Stockton Heath Blue]

Aren’t we just relying on the OSC to read these posts though. It would be more effective if we wrote en masse to the club or the fan groups to highlight these areas. People on this thread saying ‘what do you expect?’ but if you go to away games regularly to any of the modern stadiums, they seem to have it right. Even Wembley doesnt have the same problems with queues as we are having. Club will say arrive earlier, but there were long queues outside SS yesterday even at 2.30. Perhaps we should arrive the night before?

It would be a cop out by the club to say arrive early. I no longer park on the official City car parks but the fact that Blue car park has seen traffic backing up as far as Oldham Rd is one of the reasons why people are getting in later. Not sure if it’s the same for Orange coming the other way?
Add to this the fact that we’ve lost surrounding car parks like the velodrome and the abattoir this season only serves to heap more pressure on getting to the match.

 

[Tim of the Oak]

Yes I got stuck in that bastard. First time I've driven this season as well. Normally get the rattler. Persevered and was in me seat by 3:14. Many thanks to the kind lady who drives the mini bus up Mercer Way who took pity and gave me a lift!

Where do you normally get on the train mate?

 

[Tim of the Oak]

It would be a cop out by the club to say arrive early. I no longer park on the official City car parks but the fact that Blue car park has seen traffic backing up as far as Oldham Rd is one of the reasons why people are getting in later. Not sure if it’s the same for Orange coming the other way?
Add to this the fact that we’ve lost surrounding car parks like the velodrome and the abattoir this season only serves to heap more pressure on getting to the match.

Managed to get in the car park next to gas cylinder fast yesterday with turning up at the last minute. Normally, we are queuing at the traffic lights for the best part of half an hour.

 

[bladdered]

Where do you normally get on the train mate?

Bradford. Replacement buses this week due to tunnel work apparently.

 

[Bentheblue]

Ah yes I remember that, “following the success of the pilot v Everton”….
Arrived at the ground 90 minutes before kick off, got in the seat just as the ref was tossing his coin

I think the crowd for the Everton game was restricted to about 10,000, which would have been a lot easier to manage than 50k. Even so It was a fiasco trying to get in.

 

[Tim of the Oak]

Bradford. Replacement buses this week due to tunnel work apparently.

Thanks mate. I wondered if it was Bradford way or Dewsbury. I just thought in case our coach could ever do a detour off the M60 if there were Blues struggling for transport. All the best

 

[Tim of the Oak]

FWIW for Bluemooners who won’t understand some of the help fellow Blues get from the leadership off the OSC, City have messed up a ticket I’ve bought for a mate for a home game. The ticket order needs to be linked to my mate’s supporters club membership but the system isn’t working properly. Kevin Parker is giving up time on a Sunday afternoon to help me sort the ticket out.

I couldn’t care less if somebody is wealthy or not when they are giving so much help to fellow Blues.

 

[Eccles Blue]

I totally agree mate.‘I was stuck behind that piled up on the M60 for an hour and didn’t have enough cans cos I had been to the sorting office to pick up our membership cards. Then there problems with mine and my brother’s tickets at the gate. Then the game started lol.

I reckon most of the people left in the ground to clap players off were Supporters Club members who have to wait for everyone before our coaches can leave anyway

*holds hand up* sorry Tim, although an OSC member I wasn’t on the Eccles coach but I was still there at the end and applauded every single player off the pitch and booed the officials!
I was on the tram.




Of course you do realise that I am a saint don’t you? ;-) Sometimes I annoy myself by always trying to do the right thing! :-(

 

[Tim of the Oak]

*holds hand up* sorry Tim, although an OSC member I wasn’t on the Eccles coach but I was still there at the end and applauded every single player off the pitch and booed the officials!
I was on the tram.




Of course you do realise that I am a saint don’t you? ;-) Sometimes I annoy myself by always trying to do the right thing! :-(

I’m afraid I aimed a fair amount of bad language at the officials from across the pitch.

I knew you would be there at the end to clap the players off. I think it’s the fewest fans I can rember at the end of a Saturday game since we got beat by Boro 3 nil, on a freezing day approximately 40 years ago.

I am risking mentioning this but I was given a free ticket for Leeds Utd Vs Wolves last weekend. Leeds were behind for most of the game but got deafening support for the last half an hour and snatched an injury time equaliser. I hope we will be the 12th man / woman again someday.

 

[blue whippet]

I think very soon the club will have to start running a breakfast club so that everyone can get in time. They will probably charge a tenner for a bacon muffin served on a recycled paper plate. I don't eat meat so I'd need one of those alternative thingies.

 

[WNRH]

I gave up trying to getting into M1 at 3-20pm and went to Mary Ds. I went back for the second half and got in.


There are things the club could do to get people in early, simple things like make a pie and a pint half price before 2-30pm.

If technophobes like me want a paper ticket/old style SC then it should be allowed. If a queue of 500 people takes 30 seconds each to find the ticket on the phone ( Remember in this day and age phone theft is rife and losing your phone can mean losing lots more than just being able to ring someone, people will be reluctant to walk around with their phone in hand) that queue is 4 hours long. If it takes 10 seconds its still over 1 hour. Factor in being searched, wanded, etc and you can see why it is a mess.

Fan culture as well, as long as I have been going we always got in 5 minutes before KO, Maine Road had lots of pubs in walking distance, the Etihad doesnt, so days like yesterday when trams were poor because of shortages of them then fans are stuck in town and will arrive later, plus have we have seen posted the motorways were fucked as well.

At 3-20pm yesterday i was on the verge of quitting going, by 3-45pm i was missing City, by 4pm i was in the ground. Yes its shit at the moment, the club have got lots of things wrong and it is easy to blame the fans for it, what we need to do is find a way around it.

I still think the suggestion of putting a ring around the stadium with lots of turnstiles at different points is the best solution. I don't like being in the ground until just before KO, i cannot stand all the bullshit that goes on the PA system but i have to listen to it all now because otherwise i may miss KO.

My friends and family are at different parts of the ground. If we had a ring around the stadium, we could all go through, meet, sit, chill, eat, drink and then 5-10 mins before KO separate and go through our entrances without having to join a que or get searched as we have already done that.

This would then alleviate the ques for the latecomers. A win win for everyone.

City put on all these attractions and amenities pre game around the stadium but by doing so make it difficult to actually see all of the 90 minutes of the attraction they have actually paid for.

 

[Rascal]

Not having a pop, just a question, what time did you start or join the queue ?

2-45ish

 

[jrb]

No f*cking about with sticking your mobile into a scanner hoping it’s inserted properly and the right way around. And hearing the slow clunking of the turnstile turning.

Just hold up your mobile in front of the scanner and wizz through the fast turnstile.

A triple turnstile. They do doubles and singles as well.

Get it sorted City and Danny.

 

[Eccles Blue]

You know this 'inserting the mobile into the scanner' thing? All I do is hold my mobile in front of the little half circle thing and then it beeps and lets me through .... why don't I have to insert my phone in? (Not that I want to just interested!)

 

[Didsbury Dave]

My friend works for a Premier League club. They are starting mobile ticketing next season. They are being courted by the company who did both ours and Liverpool's new system. I was interested to hear that he's been taken for a day to see it in action - at Anfield, even though our stadium is much closer. I wonder why that is?

 

[jrb]

You know this 'inserting the mobile into the scanner' thing? All I do is hold my mobile in front of the little half circle thing and then it beeps and lets me through .... why don't I have to insert my phone in? (Not that I want to just interested!)

You best tell me, others, and the Stewards that, because everyone I see is still inserting their mobiles into the Bermuda Triangle Scanners, where mobiles disappear.

 

[Corky]

My friend works for a Premier League club. They are starting mobile ticketing next season. They are being courted by the company who did both ours and Liverpool's new system. I was interested to hear that he's been taken for a day to see it in action - at Anfield, even though our stadium is much closer. I wonder why that is?

Quicker access via Leeds and Liverpool canal?

 

[Eccles Blue]

You best tell me, others, and the Stewards that, because everyone I see is still inserting their mobiles into the Bermuda Triangle Scanners, where mobiles disappear.

That was the way the young lady at the drop in session showed me........ watch it not work on Wednesday now!!!
She said hold the back of the phone up to the scanner thingymabob and it works.

(Plus my mobile is in a cover thing with my bus pass card etc in it. Got lovely photos of my Great-Grandkids on!! ;-) )

EDIT: I've just had a look at the ticket for Club Brugge and at the bottom of the screen there is a little circle with a 'throbbing' picture of a mobile and it says 'Hold Near Reader' (caps because it has caps on my picture!) Not push into the reader but hold near reader.


Puzzled of Eccles (doesn't take much to puzzle me at my age!!) :-)

 

[Citizen of Legoland]

No f*cking about with sticking your mobile into a scanner hoping it’s inserted properly and the right way around. And hearing the slow clunking of the turnstile turning.

Just hold up your mobile in front of the scanner and wizz through the fast turnstile.

A triple turnstile. They do doubles and singles as well.

Get it sorted City and Danny.

View attachment 29087

We have that now via nfc. The issue is/was that you have a few hundred people entering all at the same time AND you can only let them in once. When the card or mobile is presented & read, the turnstile has to look it up against a list of expected codes but if it reads the code and the turnstile doesn't move it needs to still accept the code again, and if the turnstile was used, it needs to prevent it being re-used by writing something to the database(s).

 

[Del_Bosque]

There’s not really anywhere to leave your feedback on your visits to the ground and whats good/shite and what makes you more or less likely to go.

City Matters is a closed shop
OSC doesn’t get involved in Matchday feedback

Most gyms, resteraunts etc ask for feedback once your visits over via text email or an app. It’s pretty standard practice.

City should do the same if they arent going to have an open fans forum.