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Park and ride 'desert' flop
IT was opened at a cost of £500,000 to persuade motorists out of their cars and cut jams - but as rush hour traffic crawls by there are just a handful of vehicles at Malin Bridge park and ride.
Yesterday evening the facility, which opened in November and can accommodate up to 104 cars plus cycles, stood almost deserted.
Transport bosses today admitted they are "disappointed" with the lack of drivers using the site, provided after residents complained about motorists parking outside their homes to use the tram.
South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive hoped to attract commuters from Bradfield, Loxley, Stannington and Wisewood, charging 3.60 for parking and a day's tram travel - less than the cost of parking for two hours at many city centre sites.
Malin Bridge park and ride also boasts CCTV cameras, high quality lighting and a barrier controlled entrance to deter car criminals.
The transport executive said use of the site is being reviewed and promised to improve marketing - but previous efforts, including giving away free parking in the opening week, failed to tempt many motorists.
Just before 6pm last night, as a long line of vehicles streamed out of town along neighbouring Holme Lane, just three cars were parked at the site.
Over the next half hour, three trams pulled up but only one of several dozen passengers who got off went to retrieve her car from the park and ride. She was too busy to talk to our reporter but another woman said: "I don't think it's been promoted enough. You would have thought that with the price of parking in town people would give it a go."
Fellow tram passenger Monica Evans said: "I'm learning to drive at the moment but I would use it. I'm environmentally friendly; lots of people are lazy, though, and shy away from anything that would mean more effort."
The deserted tarmac at Malin Bridge was in stark contrast to the scene at Sheffield's other northern tram terminus, Middlewood - winner of an Association of Chief Police Officers' Safer Parking Award in 2006.
Mark Livingston, from Stocksbridge, parks his car at the site rather than face a crawl into the city centre through rush-hour traffic to work at the Department for Work and Pensions.
He said: "This park and ride is very popular. If you arrive after 9am you are not going to get a space. However, I think Malin Bridge is not on so many people's route to work."
A spokeswoman for the South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive - which is planning to closely monitor use of the site over the next few months - said: "Despite a demand for the service from people currently using Middlewood Park and Ride, initial figures have been disappointing.
"The Transport Executive is currently reviewing the situation. We are in the process of increasing marketing activities to promote the facility and are encouraging people to use it."
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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