I sympathise with Paul Streeting and his unfortunate experience in the car park where the Odeon is. But I don’t lay the blame with Odeon. I blame the Wiltshire Council (pre and post unitary) and Legal & General for not banging their heads together with an experienced cinema specialist to come up with a suitable parking scheme for the multi-storey and 111-space car park prior to construction.

Having had 20 years’ experience in multiplex cinemas and living in Trowbridge for 50 years, time and time again I have advised, written in this newspaper or stood up in council meetings telling naive councillors and planning officers what the parking requirements are for a 1,200-seat multiplex cinema, seven restaurants and an 80-bedroom hotel on holidays prior to 6pm. Did they listen? No!

This is the third newspaper report about the problems and fines at this new car park and it damages afternoon attendance of the cinema. Added to the running times of the film are ads at 12 minutes and eight minutes of trailers.

So with the 24-hour levels in the multi-storey packed daily with workers between 8am and 6pm, it isn’t rocket science to determine that when there is a film of three hours or more playing at the Odeon, the two hours only levels in the multi-storey and the three hours free in the leisure park are simply not fit for purpose for cinemagoers wanting to come in the afternoons. You are going to get a parking ticket. 

This is a nonsense policy. And there are at least a dozen mainstream films being released in 2015 with three-hour running times.

My proposal,which I have promoted for four years,was changing the two-hour section in the multi-storey to four hours (this won’t affect the covenant) and four hours free in the leisure car park to cover these films plus the shorter ones, enabling a family to eat either before or after the film. I suggest they pull their fingers out to correct this anomaly as a matter of urgency.

I have also spoken extensively with the developers of Innox Riverside about parking when Cineworld opens in 2016. My suggestions have been taken on board. They must be watching St Stephen’s Place with a wry smile.

If the council and Legal & General don’t take my advice, then the Odeon will become just a town cinema and its profitability will be in doubt.

People will not come in their cars due to the negative press it will continue to get if it isn’t sorted out. They will go back to the cinemas in Bristol or Swindon where parking is free.

I’m all for competition, but one thing is for sure, if they don’t get it sorted out, the Cineworld, one mile away, will win hands down.

Mike Baxter,
Frome Road,
Trowbridge.