Plans to expand the queuing area for football fans at a Merseyrail station in a bid to reduce overcrowding have hit the buffers. The rail operator’s proposals to extend the area at Sandhills for Everton fans to gather post-match at Hill Dickinson Stadium as they wait for their train home have been put on hold after concerns were raised by city councillors.
With thousands of Blues making their way to Regent Road via the Merseyrail network, a suite of changes have already been made to Sandhills, including a new footbridge and a fan management zone with dedicated queuing lanes for each route. Now, amid issues arising around the designs, a decision has been put on hold.
Members of the city council’s planning committee have requested a site visit to assess the full application before making a final decision. Veteran councillor Richard Kemp said the proposals were treating fans “like cattle”.
Daniel Hopkins, presenting to the committee on behalf of Merseyrail, said that following test events at the station and stadium “it was clear there was a requirement for improvements to safety in that capacity and some of the facilities we have there”. He said existing Merseytravel land would be used to do that through extended “corralling zones”.
This would be through repurposing land to extend the existing fan management zone along the strip of land between Dunes Way and the existing station ramp to the footbridge. Land to the south of the site would remain in use for the storage equipment for rail maintenance activities of Merseytravel, Merseyrail and Network Rail.
Mr Hopkins said the current arrangement left passengers vulnerable on the pavement queuing outside the station. He said, “By having this increased safety, increased operational robustness on site, that’ll in turn positively impact our operational resilience on the network.”
Mr Hopkins also outlined plans for a new bus stop on Dunes Way as well as toilets and an area for food and drink kiosks. The extended queuing area would be uncovered, however, which Cllr Billy Lake described as a “glaring omission”.
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Cllr Richard Kemp was critical of how long it had taken for improvements to be made to the station, given the lengthy discussions about Everton’s relocation away from Goodison Park.
He said, “Now you’re coming up with something that talks about corralling, compounds, sterile areas, to force people into using a system that would make the passport and security system at Liverpool Airport look like perfection.”
He added, “It isn’t good enough, after 10 years, which it will be before this gets introduced, you should have done better than this.” Mr Hopkins admitted the area was “tight” and people were currently having to be “pushed through” but the new plans would open up the land for fans to queue safely.
Cllr Pat Moloney asked the Merseyrail representatives, “Why didn’t you get this right the first time, because this is a major change?” He added, “The language is appalling and dehumanising; a corralling area, a sterile zone, this is human beings we’re talking about here.
“This is like something out of a horrific death camp in Nazi Germany. Really, this just amazes me.” Matt Wilson, chief executive of Baltic Broadband, spoke on behalf of a number of businesses who are situated around Sandhills Lane.
He said, “We do not oppose station modernisation, but this committee cannot approve an expansion built upon a layout which is already fundamentally failing. Currently, matchday event management routinely subjects our facility to total physical vehicle blockade.”
“Mr Wilson said this “nuisance” created “real world harm” and paralyses operation of businesses. Cllr Moloney moved that the item be deferred for a site visit and further information brought to determine the routes passengers would take in the event of an emergency and capacity of the site.
This was supported by committee members and as a result, a final decision is now on hold for a follow-up hearing.
Image: How the changes could look | Owen Ellis Architects
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