The first test event for the Bramley-Moore stadium takes place on Monday 17th February 2025 for a crowd restricted to 10,000 ticket holders. The test event will primarily “test” the facilities and stewarding within the Bramley-Moore footprint, ie the stadium and the fan plaza contained within the restricted access area to the west of the dock road. Two further events, with higher capacities will be held later in the year, dates to be published.

It will however also bring into sharp focus the changes the stadium will cause on traffic, transportation and the infrastructure needs of nearly 53,000 fans, most of whom will arrive and leave within similar times of each other. Initially, match day routines will be created on a trial by error basis – few of the supporters will have the intricate knowledge of the areas surrounding Goodison Park, built up by decades of match going experiences, often handed down from generation to generation.

Given that the first public confirmation, by Everton, of Bramley-Moore as a stadium was eight years ago, (the famous 2017 Annual General Meeting of shareholders featuring Joe Anderson) it’s interesting to note the levels of preparedness in the immediate areas surrounding Bramley-Moore and the city more generally.

At that time, very few people could have possibly imagined extent of the dire ownership, financial and management problems Everton would face in the coming years, even if Moshiri’s unorthodox ownership was already raising many (dare I say it) red flags. It might reasonably be considered a miracle that we are still a Premier League Club, did not go out of business and we have succeeded in building what ought to be viewed in the future as an iconic stadium.

Those problems, the lack of capital and particularly the lack of direction (outside of the project management of the stadium construction led by Colin Chong in various capacities) have no doubt contributed to the failure to fully engage and get the support of public bodies (including at national government levels) in building infrastructure alongside the stadium at the same time as construction of the stadium advanced.

Equally, the involvement of the private sector, beyond speculative purchases of land for future development or, as is most likely, just to benefit from the potential for rising land prices, has been minimal. The uncertainties around Everton’s future will not have helped, but to me at least, the lack of development in and around the northern dock area is remarkable. The fact that a national newspaper article in the last week promoting the development benefits and progress in such development led with the proposed construction of floating padel courts tells you as much as you need to  know….

Why is this important?

It’s important for numerous reasons, not least, the role Bramley-Moore plays in Everton’s return to being competitive in the Premier League; the match-day experience of Everton fans in our new and permanent home including transportation; the health and safety of 53,000 people moving into and out of the area within a short period of time; security and policing; the impact on residents and businesses; and the future regeneration of north Liverpool.

Whatever the reasons for being in the position we are now, and this article is not seeking to apportion blame, we need a co-ordinated and coherent response from local politicians, regional politicians, national government.

To even the most casual observer, an analysis of how fans move to and from the stadium appear to raise many unanswered questions. A paper in the original planning application, drawn up by Mott MacDonald cites rail capacity at Sandhills station (the closest to Bramley Moore ) of circa 11,000 passengers per hour, capacity for 15,000 taxi journeys, 8,300 parking spaces within 30 minutes walk of an evening (5,400 on a Sunday) and an unspecified number of buses along Vauxhall Road, Stanley Road, Scotland Road and Great Homer Street.

The Sandhills capacity assumes passengers will travel in equal numbers in each direction – it also assumes trains will be filled to capacity having arrived empty. Liverpool (as per a FOI request on 1 January 2024) has 2,168 private hire vehicles and 1,645 Hackney Carriage vehicles – where they all would pick up from and drop off, let alone the traffic congestion is not adequately described.

Parking has become a contested issue with the introduction of an Experimental Traffic Regulation Order.

This order will be operational from Monday 17th February 2025 for a maximum period of 18 months. Unlike what was proposed in the original planning documents, parking restrictions will apply all year round not just on match or event days. The restrictions apply to an area within 30 minutes walking distance of the stadium, impacting residents, businesses and visitors alike.

The area impacted by the ETRO can be found here: Parking Map

The purpose of raising these questions prior to the test event is one of creating greater awareness of potential issues. I am aware that there is a huge amount of discussion and future planning around Bramley-Moore, especially in relation to match and event days.

To what extent the new ownership of Everton has changed matters, improved communications, engagement and cooperation is unknown at this stage. Naturally, given the Friedkins appear responsible business owners and have committed significantly more than £500 million in equity and debt to their acquisition of Everton, they are interested parties financially, and it must be said, as custodians have a duty of care to match-going supporters, local businesses and residents plus the wider regeneration of the north Liverpool area.

Regeneration and the opportunity

Aside from the impact on Everton Football Club, Bramley-Moore should have a huge regional impact.

The regeneration results to date, the immediate prospects for greater regeneration in the short term and a longer strategy are interesting topics in their own right. Economically, it is of vital interest to the city, it should fall right into the laps of central government and their growth policies.

From a local devolution perspective and indeed regional development, our new stadium, as one of the largest private developments in recent times, in a region starved of such, should bring together all the interested parties, the City Council, the combined authority, central Government, Everton Football Club, and the private sector.

As I said earlier, the lack of visible progress in the development and regeneration prospects may have been factored by the previous ownership and Everton’s more immediate problems. However, under stable and sensible ownership, financial security and one now hopes footballing certainty, those factors are diminishing on an almost weekly basis.

Progress on matters of a much greater scale and a wider importance than just the performance of our beloved club, now have to become much more visible, constructive and real. The question is who leads this? Who takes responsibility for it, and ultimately will be held accountable for its success or otherwise?

Elected individuals certainly, but I can’t help feeling there has to be a wider responsibility and acceptance of such from many additional parties.

Bramley-Moore, the new Everton stadium is a once in a generation opportunity, a real opportunity for the city of Liverpool to build on further developments, past regeneration efforts which have succeeded. However Bramley-Moore can succeed on a scale that towers over previous successes. It just needs all of the people, bodies and authorities that can make it happen to grab the opportunity and rise to the challenge.