£50 for car parking tickets in future

[johnmcga]

On the cup deposit scheme, I genuinely can't figure out why they don't do it. It works brilliantly at Reading, so why not at Glastonbury? Or a Latitude-style reusable cup that you buy - either would be good!

[Bristol Boy]

Thinking about it, I felt that giving drivers a head start at getting in this year was a step backwards which discouraged the use of public transport, so how about a compromise: if you want to arrive and park before the gates open, you stump up an extra £30 (or whatever) for parking.

[tjb300]

It might reduce the amount of cars, but I would think people would still take lots of things they don't really need and then leave them there because they can't be bothered to haul them back on the bus or train. And plenty of people, including me, hang around a bit later on the Monday to blag a few tents, chairs, airbeds, and stoves that have been left behind. If I was taking public transport I would be less likely to do this. So it might reduce cars, but increase rubbish- it's just changing the problem.

I can't see such a large rise in prices though- especially as they just decided to open the car parks on Tuesday

[Salt_On_Everything]

I think that was partly what caused the problem in 2007, when there had been some kind of rumour that the festival was doing this when they weren't. The thing is, who leaves a perfectly in good knick tent?

[Phil-itfc]

IMO to drive to the festival is a privledge and not a right however £50 sounds absolutely crazy and will only encourage people to risk leaving thier cars by the side of the roads. Their are much better things Glasto could do to encourage people to take thier gear home such as freebies or even if you show your newly tidy campsite to a steward you recive a voucher to either reclaim your parking cost or get a free parking voucher/discount on next years festival.

[indisguise]

So is this saying that people who travel to the festival in cars are responsible for the rubbish left behind????

Not sure what everyone else thinks but maybe it is harder for people who take the train / coach to be asked to take everything home and are therefore responsible for leaving lots of stuff behind

just a thought

[flaimedog]

Sounds like a way of getting more money out of festival goer's. The less stuff you can carry, the more stuff you have to buy on site. More food, from the over priced stalls, more beer's from the bar's etc etc.

It would probably cost me and my other half more than £50 to get to glastonbury via public transport, and take us a whole day.

We always clear up our camp site, and rarely leave things behind. This year a 'neighbour' of our's bought a tent from the millets stall for £120 plus air beds and sleeping bags, chairs etc and left it all. We took down the tent and brought it home and shared out the rest of the stuff he left. If people can afford to dump hundred's of quids worth of stuff they wont bat an eyelid at £50 parking fee. It will only affect those of us on a budget as usual!!

[ukslim]

So is this saying that people who travel to the festival in cars are responsible for the rubbish left behind????

Not sure what everyone else thinks but maybe it is harder for people who take the train / coach to be asked to take everything home and are therefore responsible for leaving lots of stuff behind

just a thought

[doogleduck]

Both times that I have been, we have hired a minibus and driven it down absolutely chock to the brim (with 15 people). Should we pay an increased parking ticket?

[jontosh]

The car-park fee should be £10 per empty seat in the car, payable on entry to the carpark.

With regards to the original post - those who have the cash to abandon all their camping gear probably aren't going to be too bothered about a hike in the car park fee anyway. It's also quite a sweeping statement to say that those who abandon their stuff came by car.

[ParanoidAndroid86]

It's absolutely wrong to increase it 250% and penalise everyone - I would imagine it's gone up a fair bit over the last few years as it is. They should probably make coach tickets more reasonable to restore some balance - some of the fares I saw advertised this year were extortionate. If you have to limit the amount of food and drink you take you'll also have to spend considerably more once you get there.

I paid about £45 extra in 2003 (as coach packages were the only tickets left) to travel from Milton Keynes and then there was there was the fiasco one the return journey with countless coaches not turning up. We had to wait about 9 hours (half of that in the rain with no shelter) for a coach to be sorted, and it was Glasto security - not SEE tickets - that did so in the end. I wrote SEE a letter and didn't even get an acknowledgement - others somehow got a partial refund. So if there's another mudbath, will the coaches actually turn up?

I'd only be inclined to take a coach again if it was £25-30 from MK/London - £50+ is a rip-off.

[mikeb]

£50 for a car park ticket ... brilliant idea and I've been saying it for years ! which will no doubt come as no surprise to anyone who has read any of my rants on the use (or rather lack of use) of Public Transport

HOWEVER, any such measure needs to effectively be accompanied by around a £10 REDUCTION in General Admission ticket price so that a car full of peeps end up paying no more than before. I have absolutely no problem whatsoever with what pretty much amounts to penalising car drivers and in particular the 1 person per car brigade but those who do use their private vehicles responsibly should NOT be penalised in any way. 4 peeps in a car is as good (if not better in some ways) than public transport so far as environmental issues various are concerned.

Provision of more and better/cheaper Public Transport also needs to be looked at of course as well as potentially introducing Camping Tickets - however, this again needs to be accompanied by an effective REDUCTION in General Admission ticket price so as not to penalise the responsible peeps. If you want to bring massive great tents and/or huge gazebos etc. then fine ... just so long as you pay your fair share of the costs involved in providing the land for you to use and for clearing up afterwards then no problem.

I really wish I'd been there for the talk/debate meself

Edited June 29, 2010 by mikeb

[fowls]

I dunno if it's every year, but there's definitely things been advertised at Download saying that if you're gonna leave your tent, please don't trash it, cos they have a charity team who take them down if they're in good nick and send them to the 3rd world.

Edited June 29, 2010 by fowls

[jontosh]

having read plenty of horror-stories on here about horrific coach journeys, and coaches not turning up, I'd doubt I'd even consider a free coach down from Sheffield. I got the coach in 2003, before I passed my test, and it wasn't exactly pleasant. Glasto isn't an exception in this, public transport in the UK is outrageously overpriced, it's rare that public transport is cheaper compared to 1 person with car - throw a few mates in and it's pretty much a bargain to drive.

Edited June 29, 2010 by jontosh

[Phil-itfc]

No festival does this. It was considered for a brief moment, before it was decided the only feasible way of doing it was for people to take their own tents down and leave them at recycle points. To hire volunteers to take down tents, pack them up and ensure they're good enough to be reused costs several times as much money as it would cost to simply buy whole new tents, and would slow down the clearing up of the festival site.

Unfortunately, the rumour that festivals would take down tents spread and seems to have stuck for years. I guess the people who are lazy enough to leave their tents behind want to make themselves feel better by kidding themselves it's all for charity.

[scappaflow]

I do agree that Car Park tickets are a bit underpriced at circa £15.

But I think £50 is a bit steep, but I'm sure that £30 would put a few people off and also get folks more organised to car share and / or take the bus when they can. As well as raising a bit more cash for good causes and the like without any additional outlay.

However, in reality - it's a 5 day festival and really most people would need a car to get all their stuff on site and do at least one trip back to the car park after setting up.

Also, what I would say is that there were 5 people in our group and two drivers. I have a Honda Civic (decent sized Hatch) and the other driver had a Clio (small Hatch). Although there are 5 seats in my car (the larger car) there is NO way we could have got all our stuff for 5 people for 5 days in the boot. Even if we'd taken two large tents rather than 4 smaller tents and not taken a gazebo... no way would it all have fitted.

My friend could not even fit 3 people and their stuff in her Clio and we had to spread it over my car with one of the back seats down.

The reality is that most people going to Glasto don't have a people carrier or van to take 4 or 5 people plus stuff, so car sharing would be difficult for any groups of 4 or 5 people. And it is a 5 day fest so really you should not have to compromise on what you take as most people do take their stuff home.

Edited June 29, 2010 by scappaflow

[halfpint]

No festival does this. It was considered for a brief moment, before it was decided the only feasible way of doing it was for people to take their own tents down and leave them at recycle points. To hire volunteers to take down tents, pack them up and ensure they're good enough to be reused costs several times as much money as it would cost to simply buy whole new tents, and would slow down the clearing up of the festival site.

Unfortunately, the rumour that festivals would take down tents spread and seems to have stuck for years. I guess the people who are lazy enough to leave their tents behind want to make themselves feel better by kidding themselves it's all for charity.

Edited June 29, 2010 by halfpint

[fowls]

errrrr...yes they do. I did it at Leeds last year. Spent all day Monday & Tuesday working as a green messenger and we collected a massive pile of stuff. Loads of perfectly new tents left. Unfortunately at Leeds this is outweighed by the new tents trashed so they couldn't be used.

[halfpint]

Don't Green Messengers just collect packed up tents at the drop off zones? I wasn't aware they spent time taking down fully erect tents.

[refriedgenes]

£50 car park ticket would still probably work out cheaper for me than taxi, train, glastocoach, train, taxi - not to mention the fact I'd have to buy nearly all my beer onsite.

Plus I'm 6 foot and haven't been on a coach yet that has enough legroom to stop me suffering from cramp. It sounds to me like they're just trying to raise a few more quid - admittedly it might be to pay more litterpickers afterwards.

I think it would be in danger of changing the demographic even further and making it an enclave of the well off, which would be a shame.

[buckshee]

people bring so much stuff as you can't be sure of the weather so have to take sun and rain gear . We started taking more beer and food and stuff like a stove and plates and cups and stuff cos the price of food and drink is a joke.

[junglist_matty]

My mate volunteered for litter picking after the festival in 2008, he went round and packed up a load of leftover tents and made about £1000 selling them on eBay; probably selling them back to the people who had left them ready for next year!

[cejx]

Or invert it still further on its head and say that only people using public transport can arrive before say 6pm Wednesday or even 6am Thursday. That way those who make an environmental concession can get the best camping spots etc.

[Runner]

penalizing those for un-used seats in their cars won't work for everyone. I think somebody on here said £10 per un-used seat?

I have a mini and drove my mate down. We had limited stuff, but due to lack of funds I had some food and cooking equipment. But even so it was just my hexi-stove and limited equipment!

Even so, just our tents and rucksacks filled the back seat!

The £5 hike up for the car park ticket was a sting for me this year, if it were to go up to £50 I'd have to seriously re-consider going. And I've always taken my stuff home, and put rubbish in bins (even dead smokes).

[Spindles]

I don't drive, so am unnaffected by car park prices. It costs a hell of a lot more than £50 if you are using public transport.

Taking your car is a luxury, imo. A luxury I've never enjoyed personally and one I'm unlikely to experience in the future.

I don't think this measure would have much positive environmental impact, merely take the festival another step away from the poor. I went without all year to pay for 2 tickets, travel costs (public transport: £130 per person) and spending money. I literally lived on noodles and crap food for months to achieve this as I earn less than £8k

If prices continue to rise for tickets, food and refreshments I expect I will not be able to attend much longer (I will be there next year for sure, I'll save like a bastard for 6 months like I did this year).

Personally I think they should be looking at making the festival more accessable to people who are not wealthy and less prone to wasteful living if they want to make it more environmentally friendly. I do not waste a thing in life. I doubt the same could be said for many of the people I saw who clearly had enormous amounts of money to play with and saw nothing wrong with spending as much in a day as I earn in a month.

£50 car park pass penalised the poor, encourages the rich and will NOT help ecologically at all. You'll just see bigger and newer cars in the car parks.