Here’s some more of the thought provoking piece by our old mate, author and journalist Martin Cloake.
In this installment (and believe me there will be more) Martin looks at getting to and from the ground and the buzz phrase of our generation, the ‘Olympic Legacy’.
One ‘issue’ with Tottenham’s current ground is transport links. It’s taken as given that they are ‘poor’ and that substantial improvement is needed. This in turn feeds into the argument about Stratford having better links due to the Olympic infrastructure works. But take a breath here.
There are five mainline rail stations and one tube station within walking distance of White Hart Lane. Driving is a problem, but driving anywhere in London is a problem. Congestion at White Hart Lane rail station and Seven Sisters tube can be bad, but not as bad as the congestion outside the Emirates stadium which sees Holloway Road tube closed and Highbury and Islington overwhelmed on match days.
The problem with getting to White Hart Lane is that the, and this is obviously a personal opinion but one based on bitter experience, greedy and incompetent people who allegedly ‘run’ the transport system in this country are in charge of it. That’s why trains are regularly cancelled for engineering work on days when 36,000 are expected to use them to get to Spurs, why short trains are scheduled and why timetables are so bad.
To get to Stratford, punters on public transport will have to use services provided by the same greedy incompetents – who will doubtless be on their best behaviour for the Olympics but return to providing the kind of transport ‘service’ that has made this country a laughing stock afterwards. While maintaining profits, of course.
Even driving may not provide the answer, for to get to and from Stratford’s swanky new roads people will at some stage have to use the less than swanky old ones such as the A10, North Circular, M25, A13 etc. So I need some convincing about this transport thing. One thing a European tour does show us fans is how a transport system can work when a country has the sense to realise it is a key service rather than another commodity.
Having whipped up a storm of condemnation for the plans to demolish the Olympic Stadium should Spurs be awarded it, the club is addressing the criticism that this betrays the legacy promised by the London organisers. So much is being made of plans to refurbish the crumbling Crystal Palace Stadium – ironically very close to the site of Tottenham Hotspur’s historic 1901 FA Cup win when the club became the only non-league side to win the trophy. (In my mind’s eye I can see the club’s PR guru scribbling that one down). That’s going to be funded from profits made by the new stadium. Really?
The first, and obvious, question is how long will it take for the new Spurs football stadium to generate enough money to refurbish Crystal Palace? Then there’s how long will it take to build? How long a gap does this leave between an existing athletics facility at the Olympic Stadium being torn down and the new one going up?
And how much of a priority will funding and building that facility be for a club (hopefully) still competing at the top of English and European football, with all the financial resources that involves?
You don’t have to be a professional cynic to have more than a few doubts.
In the original plan for NPD, I was interested to read that one of the central planks of the transport policy was to ‘Co-ordinate with the rail authorities to ensure that engineering works & closures don’t clash with match days’… Or words to that effect.
I must admit, that my original reaction was… What? Hasn’t anyone done that already? It’s taken you over 100 years to work that one out!!?
:shocked2:
I come in by rail from London Fields to WHL (about 20mins) and then hang for a beer after the game before trundling home in the same leisurely fashion.
While I appreciate I’m lucky that I live in that commuting distance there’s no reason why anyone who wants to drive couldn’t benefit. The club could have done much more by simply offering a park & ride scheme utilising the rail connections North & South.
If the alternative is a 15-20 min queue for the train and a discounted train ride (courtesy of the club) or a 2-hour logjam and £10 match day parking to some dodgy scrap yard dealer, surely even most of the nerks that drive would opt for it?
Nice Darts, Keith.
A tad random. So I shan’t be offended if you don’t get it :blush:
Keith Talent, a God amongst men. No one better with the arrows, either, neither.
Get in, sir!!!!!!!!!
Have thumbed same on said journey… If only you could still puff on a briar on the railways. Oh well, all journeys can’t be perfect.
Stratford has Central Line, Jubilee Line, Docklands Light Railway, Mainline (BR) and Eurostar connections. Hardly comparable to WHL.
Even I who incidentally stubbornly refuse to use public transport unless I’m seriously pissed know that stratford has seriously good transport links
Spurs on the other hand have a tube which deafens you, two half arsed train lines quite close, a half arsed train line which is poorly accessible to the ground and buses which arrive before these transport hubs full up already
TFL need to bring northumberland park’s sidings into play and organise a matchday tram/buses from the hale. We would just about cope then.
Ive just realised that the message I posted earlier – and indeed the majority of this thread has gone all fuckin sensible and land value, transport infrastructure debate orientated.
Lets get back to the made-up/nailed on/stolen etc transfer news ! Pienarrrrr is good but Im desperate for news on a striker (not Bent)
I have to take responsibility. The usual utter bollocks will be resumed shortly :daumen: Please accept my apologies :-D
Scargill … ahem I’m sure I said that before … deja vu and the repeating burp that is my mind
so we have signed 2 boks then this window,
pienaar is in,lets hope he fits in well,i hope its not the 75,000 a week that the media love to spout because that should be going on a hitman that can hit,
just saw the sky video wjere harry confirms the deal with his No 2 driving,funny it is
anyway he says o’hara will be off on loan and that there were more scouts watching so expect more loans
hopefully levy can pull off a striker or 2 from somewhere before the 31st,sell pav,keane and crouch if need be,it wouldn’t bother me and sunderland have a few quid to burn,the clocks ticking and levy must eyeing up that dosh
kevin bond driving so ‘arry can do the deals on the phone?
Why don’t we stop fucking around & raid inter for eto’o & milito?
Realistically who is out there who will improve our frontline?
Suarez? too similar to VDV? I’m getting twitchy – even adeybuyawhore seems like an upgrade at the moment
The Grauniad piece at least backed up the Benzema loan approach – if not my ‘Deal Doner’ headline – but it all seems like a Mexican stand off.
H, you know my inside knowledge when I get it comes from the top drawer – I was promised a top class striker would be landing
I’m getting sick of waiting
why hasn’t that pointless shouty one got the hint yet?
yeah i understand it’s not easy buying a billy big time but if yanited can get chicharito for a packet of peanuts and the best table at manchesters finest mexican restaurant,why can’t we at least he can head and shoot in the direction of the goal which is more than our lot do
they need to throw some money now,sell or exchange crouch,keane,pav for carroll,adewhore thats the best i can do right now at least they are real target men which with our formation is all we are missing,why harry and levy can’t see this i don’t know,crouch is wasting everybody’s time and we all know it
I don’t see emmanuel arriving at the club and gaining automatic first team selection. Badda boosh badda bing
Carroll is not going anywhere for a start.
Adebayor would be a fair deal though.
But Suarez is the hot property that Spurs should be aiming for. He’s there for the taking.
Or would we rather see Liverpool get him??
“piennar is in” = cheeky
As in Limpbit Olberk?
Pervert, wash your teeth out with biscuit fun