A splendid first experience of ice hockey at the Palace this weekend, preceded by the art fair and followed briefly by The Phoenix and a stunning view of a crescent moon plus Venus. With the trains out all weekend, we drove there and followed the web advice to park on site rather than on nearby streets and so pay to help with the Palace’s funding challenges. £10.50 in our case, with a ticket for the art fair nearby Grove car park running until about 8:45pm.
That’s fine until left hand works against right hand and the 3rd party parking provider is less interested in customer experience than income. So locked in our car was, although the nice Indian based agent did repeatedly ensure us the by then heavily padlocked gate would lift when the car approached it. Sticking with the script, no matter what, she did.
A thorough check did finally reveal a rather small, dark, sign about 3m up a pole some way from the entrance on a bend and positioned against the natural viewing line when traversing same indicating the car park was closed 7pm until 6am the next morning. Three ubers later we were reunited with the car next day, Sunday morning.
So, what does the Palace need of its partners to support its own stated position and stop its own brand being undermined? Certainly, more signage, at least as frequent and prominent as the providers own pricing / warning ones: and why not a simple (?) adjustment to the ticket machine so that it doesn’t take your money for time periods when the car park is not functioning. AI is hardly needed for that, just a common-sense hat.
I’ve fed this in but somehow suspect we will not be the first to have fallen into this experience black hole, so any local trustees or councillors, or even car park provider directors, observing – over to you.
Replies
Good grief so frustrating Karl....let's hope this gets some attention and is resolved speedily.
Yes, Susie, you'd hope so, The car park operators accept thy manage the equipmenet but closure is down to the park management - trustees. As for suitable warning signage, who knows at this satge, but on the basis its the park management closing up at times they determone the reasonable assumption is it is again down to the trustees. Unquestioably something to sort out generally and particualrly so if they are now encouraging visitors to park on site to assist with their fee income. I'd suggest they could also do with responding to input in a less than tardy manner, or at this stage - just responding at all. Much scope for improvement here, and it shouldn't be difficult.