The coach industry has come to the rescue of the FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool FC and Manchester City FC at Wembley Stadium on Saturday 16 April after the FA agreed to pay for 200 coaches that will provide free return travel to supporters of both teams.
The unusual move is in partial mitigation of a lack of direct rail services between the North West and London over the Easter weekend. 100 coaches will be provided for each club by the FA. It comes after the Association received heavy criticism for pushing ahead with the fixture despite knowing of long-planned railway engineering works.
As well as the free road transport, other paid for coach travel to the FA Cup semi-final has been arranged by various organisations. On 24 March – the day before the FA announced its decision to pay for transport – Manchester City FC said it had secured “an initial” 50 coaches, tickets for which were being sold at £40 return.
Travel agents are also offering coach travel from Liverpool or Manchester, with one offering return tickets from Merseyside at £60. Another says all its coach journeys will be carbon neutral.
National Express Transport Solutions (NETS) will provide the 200 free coaches on behalf of the FA. Managing Director Tony Lawman has told routeone that the vehicles used will be sourced from within both its own fleet and the fleets of approved operator partners. NETS is “actively looking” to recruit new operators to the latter list, Mr Lawman continues.
“We are seeing increased demand across our major contracts and private hire alongside big events such as FA Cup fixtures, the Tyson Fury vs Dillian Whyte boxing match at Wembley on 23 April and Glastonbury Festival in June. We have a lot of work available to suit a wide range of operators.”
Network Rail says that the West Coast Main Line rail works have been planned for some time. Passenger Director for the North West and Central region Dave Penney has urged supporters of both sides involved in the semi-final not to travel to London by train.
Earlier in March, Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham and Mayor of Liverpool City Region Steve Rotheram jointly wrote to the FA calling on it to move the fixture to a location more convenient for supporters, citing excessive costs for travelling fans as one of the reasons to do so.
The FA will also pay for what it describes as “a number” of coaches to transport Manchester City supporters attending the Vitality Women’s FA Cup match at Wembley on Saturday 16 April. That fixture will be played before the FA Cup semi-final.
