Hundreds of BSO fans ‘trapped’ in car park for an hour because of parking fees changes

Frustrated drivers were caught up in lengthy queues at the Dolphin Shopping Centre multi-storey, because of the new Borough of Poole (BOP) parking fees changes introduced days earlier.

Concert-goer Alan Wakefield explained: “Normally you can pay £1.50 after 6.30pm for parking all evening. And to save time, you can take your ticket from the barrier when you first enter and pre-pay the charge before leaving for the concert across the road at the Lighthouse Arts Centre.

“This means when the concert finishes, you simply walk back to your car and drive out of the car park. On Wednesday I paid up front and left for the concert. But when I was driving out after another tremendous performance by the BSO the barriers would not open.”

The 78-year-old, a regular Lighthouse patron, said dozens of other theatre-goers were trapped at the barriers.

“Basically it was chaos. Everyone was being told they hadn’t paid enough, that under the new regulations they’d only paid for one hour’s parking. They were forced to leave their cars at the barriers and go back up to the pay stations.

“All of the exits were jammed up, I was at the front and it took me more than twenty minutes to get out. But there were hundreds of people caught up in the chaos - some were stuck there for at least an hour.”

Mr Wakefield, from Wimborne, now fears if people cannot pre-pay for out of hours charges it may affect attendances at the Lighthouse Theatre.

Under the latest BOP parking changes, evening pre-parking fees take effect from 10pm, not 6pm as before

“Surely the old system should be reinstated, just with a new charge,” said Mr Wakefield.

“Come on Poole council, admit you are wrong and support your prestigious arts centre.”

A BOP spokesman said: “We are aware of the issues experienced by some car park users and apologise for any inconvenience caused. Evening operational procedures are being reviewed to mitigate this in the future.”