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The Walk Home From Hell

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if you walk home up clarence road after the game, we all have noticed cars can come flying along now towards carrow road and a lot do not have a regard for pedestrians. this is the first year it is like this as the police normally close it. why is it open? bloody money again. the club think the highways should pay for the 20 MINUTE closing and the highways think the football club should pay.

mark my words - unless you pratts sort it out soon someone will by knocked down.

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[quote user="glove1"]if you walk home up clarence road after the game, we all have noticed cars can come flying along now towards carrow road and a lot do not have a regard for pedestrians. this is the first year it is like this as the police normally close it. why is it open? bloody money again. the club think the highways should pay for the 20 MINUTE closing and the highways think the football club should pay. mark my words - unless you pratts sort it out soon someone will by knocked down.[/quote]

 

See Foulger''s webchat for the answer.

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I was clipped by a kb in a soft top (earlier in the season) This was reported to the police and the club. Walk with keys in my hand now. Someone is bound to get hurt soon. Can''t all those daft enough to leave the game at early drive as slow as possible to hold every kb driver up.

There was a kb once that hooted some old bloke who turned round and returned a jesture. The bloke in the car started being abusive and went to get out of his car until all the supporters nearby got involved. Don''t think he fancied taking on 50 people.

I''m not sure which drivers are worse though. The arrogant men who go too fast and try going up the other side of the road if the see a gap. The old dears who seem oblivious to the fact there are pedestrians about. Or the shopper kind that look like there hands are shaking at the wheel and had no idea that driving past a football ground at 5pm might be a problem. (The last type are mainly female)

When someone is seriously hurt then they''ll sit down and sort something out.

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[quote user="CK"] There was a kb once that hooted some old bloke who turned round and returned a jesture. The bloke in the car started being abusive and went to get out of his car until all the supporters nearby got involved. Don''t think he fancied taking on 50 people. I''m not sure which drivers are worse though. [/quote]

i remember that, or something similar, it happened before a game and this chap went to get of the car and his girlfirend pulled him back.. one or 2 of the people in the group crossing the road i think were disapointed when he got back into his car having almost cacked himself...

i chuckled.

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no idea that driving past a football ground at 5pm might be a problem. (The last type are mainly female)

You mean driving past a football ground on match days might be a problem I''m sure.

And when I''ve walked out of the ground I can''t say I''ve noticed there are more females in those cars. However, as the ground is near Morrisons and more females do the shopping, it stands to reason that more females will be driving.

Personally, I say it''s ignorance of local surroundings as so many of those drivers are locals and have no idea that the football''s on. If I go anywhere with a sporting or event venue, I check to see if I need to avoid the venue at any particular time on my journey.

It would be a bit like driving to Legoland from the M3 on a race day then wondering why there''s lots of cars about...

Getting all the local drivers to be aware would be much more pertinent. How about the police putting up road signs with drop-down flaps for after games warning drivers there will be excessive numbers of pedestrians for a short time after matches?

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This is something that has seriously concerned me for some time. I raised the matter with the Club (Andy Batley, the Stadium Manager) who reassured me that the safety of supporters was "paramount" and then went on to say that traffic management was nothing to do with the Club.

I also had lengthy discussions with Sophie Britch (the Club''s solicitor) who advised me that the Club are in lengthy debate with the Local Traffic Authority (Norfolk County Council) regarding this matter. I asked her why it was not possible for the Club to stop vehicles leaving their own car parks after the game as apparently happened in previous seasons. She merely replied in writing that it was not possible.

The Police (off the record) are appalled by the current situation. They view it as a basis cost-cutting exercise and I understand that the Club initially had the intention of having no police on duty at the Millwall game. This was only reversed after pressure was applied.

The Police also say that the problem is Norfolk County Council''s but the County says they have passed responsibility to the City Council.

I have appraised Chis Lakey of the situation but he passed it on to the News Desk at the EDP on 6th December as "it''s a story for them not sport". Silly me, forgot who his boss is.

The matter has been brought to the attention of Charles Clarke but, because I do not live in his constituency, the best he can do is have an "unofficial" word when he next sees someone on the Board. My M.P., Norman Lamb, acknowledged my e-mail on December 9th with a warning that all correspondence is prioritised and treated with equal importance. Since then, nothing.

I think that supporters are right to be worried. I have witnessed incidents myself where pedestrians were put at risk. In recent weeks, HGVs and buses have used Clarence and Carrow Roads shortly after the games ended.

A plea to the Club. I accept your assurance that you care about your supporters. Please prove it by getting this dangerous situation sorted immediately. Do not wait until someone is badly injured or, worse still, killed.

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Charles Clarke, the jug-eared twot, is about as much use as tits on a fish.Pedestrians would be better off avoiding Clarence Road by taking an alternative route.

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[quote user="glove1"]if you walk home up clarence road after the game, we all have noticed cars can come flying along now towards carrow road and a lot do not have a regard for pedestrians. this is the first year it is like this as the police normally close it. why is it open? bloody money again. the club think the highways should pay for the 20 MINUTE closing and the highways think the football club should pay.

mark my words - unless you pratts sort it out soon someone will by knocked down.[/quote]

As mentioned above, this is totally down to cost-cutting by the Club. The Police have confirmed that NCFC are no longer prepared to pay for Police presence before, during and after games (unless they are absolutely forced to do so because of exceptional circumstances). They also have

washed their hands of all things that happen outside the ground, e.g. traffic management (even when their own car parks are involved).

Quite simply, this is not good enough. The Club, even if it doesn''t have a legal responsibility in respect of spectator safety after games, most certainly has a moral one, particularly when we keep getting told what wonderful and loyal people we are. Come on Chief Exec, get this resolved.

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Webbo 118 wrote : ......The Police (off the record) are appalled by the current situation. They

view it as a basis cost-cutting exercise and I understand that the Club

initially had the intention of having no police on duty at the Millwall

game
. This was only reversed after pressure was applied...........Someone''s having a laugh surely ?There can''t be any ground in the country that doesn''t have a strong police presence when Millwall are the visitors. Our stewards alone would never have coped on Boxing Day. They may well swagger around when the less intimidating fans visit - there''s plenty of evidence of the old '' jobsworth '' approach then judging by some away supporters comments - but they were quite happy to allow all the Millwall fans to stand for the entire match. Amazingly even with a police presence they didn''t seem to notice this as they would surely then have told them to sit down or they would be ejected for breaking ground regulations ?Had there been no police on duty I doubt it would have taken too long for Millwall''s finest to have cottoned on. Then the fun and games would have really begun....

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I was told by a senior member of Norfolk Police that originally the Club planned to have no police presence at the Millwall game. It was only when pressure was applied that the Club relented.

The Club feeling was that as soon as relegation to Division 3 happened, police presence was no longer required before, during and after games. This has, in fact, been the case at the majority of games this season. The complete lack of traffic management after games is also a part of this change in policy - all to save money.

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[quote user="Rivvo"]Totally agree, it''s an accident waiting to happen, petition on  this site?[/quote]

I think that is an excellent idea.

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I understand from their web-site that Colchester have applied and obtained powers to close the roads near to their ground after the game on Saturday. They say that this is to reduce the risks associated with a large number of spectators leaving the stadium at once and coming into contact with vehicles. Wouldn''t it be great to support a Club with an enlightened Board who really cared about their supporters instead of the "know cost of everything and value of nothing" mob that we have been lumbered with?

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I don''t won''t to get in to the my club your club thing but yes, we (Colchester) will be shutting Boxted road that runs near the ground, it''s the road that anyone walking towards the station etc will come out on to after the match.Once the A12 junction has been completed this section is supposed to be upgraded apparently to be a lot better for supporters to leave onThe clubs should always worry about their supporters safety (although I don''t know how often they do)

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In our case, for as long as I can remember, the after-match arrangements were efficient and they worked; i.e. supporters were able to leave the ground in relative safety. This season has been a nightmare with no traffic control whatsoever with the subsequent risk of large numbers of supporters leaving the ground coming into contact with vehicles (including HGVs and buses). I have made efforts to find out exactly what is going on and the picture is beginning to get clearer. You may not be surprised to hear that it is starting to look as if it is all down to the might pound!

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[quote user="bristol_canary"]whats a kb?[/quote]

I would like to know what a kb is as well

Having said that I walk up towrads thorpe rd and then along to Harvey lane and while I think it used to be safer with rd closed it really hasnt been much of an issue

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I guess it stands for knob.

Like all these things, it will only become an issue when something happens. I personally have witnessed a number of near accidents and unsavoury incidents in recent weeks. It just does not make sense to allow that number of people onto the streets to immediately compete for road space with motor vehicles of all types. I think the Club''s reaction to this situation is appalling.

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[quote user="Webbo118"]I guess it stands for knob. Like all these things, it will only become an issue when something happens. I personally have witnessed a number of near accidents and unsavoury incidents in recent weeks. It just does not make sense to allow that number of people onto the streets to immediately compete for road space with motor vehicles of all types. I think the Club''s reaction to this situation is appalling.[/quote]

Which road are we talking about here. Hasn''t Koblenz Avenue (or whatever its called) always been open after the game as well as the hill up to Bracondale and i''ve never seen any massive problems? Can''t say i''ve noticed any real difference this season aroudn the ground post match.

 

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[quote user="cityangel"]

[quote user="glove1"]if you walk home up clarence road after the game, we all have noticed cars can come flying along now towards carrow road and a lot do not have a regard for pedestrians. this is the first year it is like this as the police normally close it. why is it open? bloody money again. the club think the highways should pay for the 20 MINUTE closing and the highways think the football club should pay. mark my words - unless you pratts sort it out soon someone will by knocked down.[/quote]

 

See Foulger''s webchat for the answer.

[/quote]

Quite frankly, he has merely quoted the official line which is absolute nonsense. It is all very well spouting that "safety is paramount for our supporters at all times and we''ll always do all we can to try and ensure they get to and from our matches safely". If they really expect us to believe that they take their responsibilities seriously, they need to provide some evidence.

They now have the perfect example in their friends at Colchester. They have assumed responsibilities for road closures on matchdays in order to reduce the risks of a large number of supporters leaving the stadium at once coming into contact with vehicles. They have done this by making a successful application to the Council. A selected number of stewards have received training on performing road closures and now have Police accreditation to do so.

So come on Norwich - if we are prepared to nick their Manager and staff, we shouldn''t be too worried about doing the same with their traffic safety policies. Why not show that you really care about the safety of supporters, even if it is going to cost a bit of money and effort.

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[quote user="Jim Smith"]

[quote user="Webbo118"]I guess it stands for knob. Like all these things, it will only become an issue when something happens. I personally have witnessed a number of near accidents and unsavoury incidents in recent weeks. It just does not make sense to allow that number of people onto the streets to immediately compete for road space with motor vehicles of all types. I think the Club''s reaction to this situation is appalling.[/quote]

Which road are we talking about here. Hasn''t Koblenz Avenue (or whatever its called) always been open after the game as well as the hill up to Bracondale and i''ve never seen any massive problems? Can''t say i''ve noticed any real difference this season aroudn the ground post match.

 

[/quote]

My personal experience is Carrow Road, Clarence Road, towards Thorpe Road (after leaving the Barclay). The contributor who started the thread summarises the problem perfectly.

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The stupid thing is, back in the pre-Southern Bypass days, when Carra Rud and Clarence Road were acually a section of the A47 they used to close it. There would be a line of artics waiting patiently who''d all blast their horns when the road opened again.Seen a number of potential flashpoints over the last couple of years caused by idiots in cars who seem to think its ok to use their vehicle to harrass pedestrians/block pavements.

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