1. 3. Masterplanning
3.1 The need for a masterplan 3.4 Overlay
3.2 Orientation 3.5 Security against terrorism
3.3 Zoning 3.6 Conclusion
3.1 The need for a masterplan include not only the direct sporting functions but
also very substantial parking areas, pedestrian and
3.1.1 Basic principles vehicular circulation routes, etc.
Sports complexes are often constructed over a
period of years (or even decades) for reasons of 3.1.2 Sequence of decisions
finance, natural growth or land availability. To help All design must set out from the following determin-
ensure that the ultimate development is consistent in ing factors.
terms of aesthetic quality and functional efficiency,
Pitch/central area
and to avoid abortive work, a comprehensive plan
The starting point of design is the central area or
for the entire development should be evolved at the
playing field. Its shape, dimensions and orientation
very outset. This allows successive phases of the
must enable it to fulfil all the functions required of it
development to be carried out by different com-
(see Chapter 6).
mittees or boards over a period of time in the safe
knowledge that their particular phase will be consist- Seating capacity
ent with the whole (Figure 3.1). Next comes the seating capacity. If the pitch is to be
of variable size to cater for very different activities
As an example of a masterplan, Figure 3.2 shows in then the design capacity should be stated as two
schematic form the masterplan for the new Milton figures: the number of seats around the maximum
Keynes stadium by HOK Sport Architects. pitch size (perhaps football or athletics) and the
maximum capacity around the smallest space user
The art of planning large stadium sites hinges on the (perhaps the performers in a pop concert, or a box-
correct zoning of the available land and the separ- ing ring). The stadium owners will have very strong
ation of incompatible uses which must be accom- views on seating capacities as these form the basis
modated within the site boundaries. These uses of their profitability calculations.
29

2. Masterplanning
Figure 3.1 An example of a stadium planned for phased development. It is the British ‘Stadium for the Nineties’ proposal
by the Lobb Partnership (now HOK Sport Architecture) in association with the Sports Council and the structural engineers
YRM Anthony Hunt Associates.
Figure 3.2 The master-
plan for the new Milton
Keynes stadium in the UK.
Architects: HOK Sport
Architecture.
30

3. Masterplanning
Orientation
Pitch orientation must be suitable for the events to
be staged (see Section 3.2 below), and the master-
N
plan must be structured around this.
Zoning
Finally, a discipline for the arrangement of all the 15
0 -20
elements of the stadium, from the pitch at the cen-
5
tre to the parking spaces outside, is provided by the
4
need for safety zoning as explained in Section 3.3
below.
75
3.2 Orientation
3.2.1 Design factors
The orientation of the playing field will depend on the
uses to which it will be put, the main factors being:
• The hemisphere in which the stadium is located.
• The period of the year in which the designated
Best common axis of operation for many sports
sports will be played. Range acceptable for football and rugby
• The times of day these events will be played. Best range of track and field pitch games
• Specific local environmental conditions such as
wind direction. Figure 3.3 Recommended pitch orientations in northern
Europe for principal sports. The underlying principle is that
runners in athletics and sportsmen in ball games should
All the advice below applies to open stadia in tem- never have the late afternoon sun in their eyes.
perate zones in the northern hemisphere, and read-
ers should make the necessary adjustments for
stadia in other situations.
3.2.2 Football and rugby 3.2.3 Athletics
Football and rugby in Europe are played during the Field and track sports in Europe take place mostly
autumn and winter months, in the early afternoon. during the summer and autumn months. Runners
This means that the sun is low in the sky and mov- and hurdlers approaching the finishing line should
ing from south-south-west to west. An ideal orien- not have the sun in their eyes and nor, ideally, should
tation for the playing area is to have its longitudinal spectators. The ideal orientation in the northern
axis running north–south, or perhaps northwest– hemisphere is for the longitudinal axis of the track to
southeast. With these orientations the sun will be run 15 degrees west of north (Figure 3.3). The same
at the side of the stadium during play, and the early applies to the stadium, which should be situated on
morning sun will fall on the greatest area of the the same side as the home straight and as close to
pitch, thus helping any frost in the ground to thaw the finish line as possible.
before play commences. Figure 3.3 summarizes the
situation. Sometimes it is difficult to achieve the above track
orientations while also conforming with the require-
The sun should be at the side of the pitch during ments for wind direction. Where possible, alternative
play. This suits the players, the spectators and the directions should therefore be provided for running,
TV cameras. jumping and throwing events.
31

4. Masterplanning
3.2.4 Tennis by which they had entered. Because there was no
The longitudinal axis of the court should run north– Zone 3 or 4 in the Valley Parade Stadium these
south. Diverging by up to 22 or 23 degrees in either gates formed the perimeter between the stadium
direction is acceptable, and diverging by 45 degrees and the outside world and management took the
is the limit. If matches are to be played in early view that they needed to be secure – therefore the
morning or late evening the orientation becomes escaping spectators found them locked. Hundreds
more critical. of people were trapped here, the fire and smoke
soon caught up with them, and 56 people died.
3.3 Zoning Two lessons came out of this experience, one for
managers and one for designers.
3.3.1 Planning for safety
Having set the orientation the next priority is to plan
• Managers must ensure that gates offering escape
the position of the stadium on the site, and to start
from the spectator terraces to places of safety
thinking about the interrelationship of its major parts;
must be manned at all times when the stadium
and this is best done by identifying the five zones
is in use, and easily openable to let spectators
which make up the safety plan (Figure 3.4). The size
escape in case of emergency.
and location of these zones are critical to the perfor-
• Designers must recognize that management pro-
mance of the stadium in an emergency, and they are:
cedures such as the above can never be fool-
proof, and the stadium must be designed on
Zone 1 The activity area (that is the central area the assumption of management failure. There
and/or pitch on which the games take should, where possible, be a Zone 4 within the
place). outer perimeter to which spectators can escape
Zone 2 The spectator terraces. and where they will be safe even if the perimeter
Zone 3 The concourses surrounding the activity gates are locked, cutting them off from the outside
area. world.
Zone 4 The circulation area surrounding the sta-
dium structure and separating it from the
The arrangements whereby disabled spectators,
perimeter fence.
particularly those in wheelchairs, are enabled to
Zone 5 The open space outside the perimeter
make their way to this area, and be safely accom-
fence and separating it from the car parks.
modated within it, need particularly careful thought –
see Chapter 10.
The purpose of such zoning is to allow spectators to
escape from their seats, in an emergency, to a series More detailed design notes follow below, starting
of intermediate safety zones leading ultimately to with Zone 5 (the area of ‘permanent safety’) and pro-
a place of permanent safety outside. It provides a ceeding to Zone 1 (a place of ‘temporary safety’).
clear and helpful framework for design not only for
new stadia but also for the refurbishment of existing 3.3.2 Zone 5
facilities. The stadium should ideally be surrounded by car
parks, bus parks and access to transport. The car
A tragic example is provided by the fire which killed park (well-designed, to avoid bleakness) should
56 people at the Valley Parade Stadium in Bradford, ideally surround the stadium on all sides so that
UK in 1985. The stand was an old one, built of fram- spectators can park their cars on the same side of
ing and timber steppings. On 11 May 1985 a fire the stadium as their seats and then walk straight to
started in the accumulated litter under the steppings an entrance gate and to their individual seats with-
and spread rapidly through the antiquated structure. out having to circumnavigate.
Most spectators fled from the stands (Zone 2) to the
open pitch (Zone 1) and were safe; but many made Between this ring of parking areas and the sta-
their way back through the stand towards the gates dium perimeter there should be a vehicle-free zone
32

5. Masterplanning
Outside the sports ground
Outer circulation area
Zone one: The playing field.
Internal concourse
Seating Zone two: The spectator seating and standing areas.
Zone three: The internal concourses, restaurants,
Field of play
bars, and other social areas.
Zone One
Zone four: The circulation area between the stadium
Zone Two structure and the perimeter fence.
Zone Three Zone five: The open space outside the perimeter fence
Zone Four
Zone Five
Figure 3.4 Zoning diagram showing the five ‘safety zones’ which form the basis for a safe stadium.
usually described as Zone 5, which can serve sev- Stadium performances (whether they be sport,
eral useful purposes: music or general entertainment) are essentially
escapist, and their enjoyment can be heightened
• From the point of view of safety, it is a so-called by visually disconnecting the audience from the
‘permanent’ safety zone to which spectators can workaday outside environment.
escape from the stands via Zones 3 and 4, and
safely remain until the emergency has been dealt
with. It should be possible to accommodate the 3.3.3 Zone 4
whole of the stadium population here at a density The stadium perimeter will form the security line
of 4 to 6 people per square metre. across which no one may pass without a valid ticket.
• From the point of view of everyday circulation, Between this line of control and the actual stadium
Zones 4 or 5 provide a belt of space in which structure is Zone 4, which may have two functions:
spectators may circumnavigate the stadium to
get from one entrance gate to another, assuming • From the point of view of safety, it is a place of
their first choice of gate was wrong (see Section ‘temporary safety’ to which spectators may escape
14.3.1). Every effort should be made to ensure that directly from the stadium, and from which they
people are directed from their cars (or other points can then proceed to permanent safety in Zone 5.
of arrival) to the appropriate gate for their particu- It is therefore a kind of reservoir between Zones
lar seat, but mistakes will always be made and 3 and 5. If the pitch (Zone 1) is not designated as
there should be an easy route round the stadium a temporary safety zone, then Zone 4 should be
to allow for this. large enough to accommodate the whole stadium
• Retail points, meeting points and information population at a density of 4 to 6 people per square
boards can also very usefully be located in this metre. But if Zone 1 is so designated Zone 4 may
zone of open space. To serve this social function be reduced appropriately. In all cases the number
the surface and its fittings (kiosks, information of exit gates, and their dimensions, must allow
boards, etc) should be pleasantly designed, not the necessary ease and speed of egress from one
left as a bleak band of tarmac. zone to another (see Section 14.6).
• The above point can be taken further with Zone 5 • From the point of view of everyday circulation,
serving as a pleasantly landscaped buffer zone Zone 4 is the main circumnavigation route for
between the ‘event’ and the outside world. people inside the stadium perimeter (i.e. who have
33

6. Masterplanning
surrendered their tickets and passed the control additional purpose of being a place of temporary
points). safety, on the following conditions:
The importance of Zone 4 can be seen from the • The escape routes from the seating areas to the
Valley Parade fire. Because that stadium had no such pitch must be suitably designed – i.e. escape will
zone, management felt that the link between Zones not be an easy matter if there is a barrier separat-
2 and 5 had to be secure. The gates were therefore ing pitch and seating terraces (see Chapter 9).
locked, inadequately supervised, and many people • The surface material of the pitch must be
died horribly. Had there been a Zone 4 and good taken into account. The heat in the Valley Parade
signposting many lives could have been saved even fire was so intense that clothing of the police
with the outer gates being locked. and spectators standing on the grass pitch ignited:
had the pitch been covered with a synthetic
material that too might have ignited. These
3.3.4 Zone 3 matters must be thoroughly discussed with the
This comprises the stadium’s internal concourses fire authorities at design stage and it must be
and social areas (restaurants, bars, etc.) and is situ- ensured that management cannot take decisions
ated between Zones 2 and 4. Spectators must pass many years later to change the pitch surfacing
through this zone in order to reach a final place of without being aware of the implications for safety.
safety (Zones 4 or 5). For this reason this zone, or
the circulation areas within it, are often designed 3.3.7 Barriers between zones
with a good level of fire safety so that large numbers In all cases the number of exit gates, and their
of people can move through them at low risk in the dimensions, must allow the necessary ease and
short term. speed of egress from one zone to another. The prin-
ciples involved are given in Section 14.6.
Sometimes the main line of turnstiles is at the face
of the stadium, at the outside of Zone 3. If the turn- 3.4 Overlay
stiles are at the edge of Zone 4, the external pre-
cinct, then there may also be a secondary ticket At stadia there is normally a regular schedule of
check at the boundary between Zones 3 and 4 as events through the year, and sometimes on top of
people enter the main stadium. this there are more infrequent, bigger events that are
hosted there. For example a club football ground will
hold the annual list of matches of the club, and then
3.3.5 Zone 2 it might bid to hold an international cup final that will
This comprises the viewing terraces around the come to the stadium once every few years. Such a
pitch. In many cases the greatest safety risk is match will attract more spectators, more media and
thought to come from the building behind the ter- more sponsors for whom it is not worth constructing
races, so the seating terraces are seen as a place permanent accommodation, so temporary arrange-
where spectators can stay in relative safety. ments can be made, called an ‘overlay’ (see also
Section 3.4).
There may be a ticket check between Zones 2 and
3, where stewards guide people to their seat. There In order for the overlay to be accounted for in the
will often be a barrier at the edge of the arena (Zone masterplan, some idea of the events to be hosted is
1) to prevent people entering the field of play, but required. In general an infrequent event at a stadium
this barrier must not impede people trying to flee is likely to require more space, certainly outside the
from a fire or other emergency. building and possibly also inside. Some of the tem-
porary areas that might be needed are:
3.3.6 Zone 1 • Additional space for larger crowds to arrive at the
The pitch or event space forms the very centre stadium. This might be more car parking, wider
of the stadium. Along with Zone 4 it can serve the access routes, more bus drop-off areas.
34

7. Masterplanning
• Sponsors’ advertising, additional catering, sales sports activities might become the target of terror-
areas and visitor attractions. Some major events ists. The actual likelihood of a terrorist attack and the
are even accompanied by activities for people who possible methods that such people might use are
come along, but don’t have a ticket for the event. best known by the police, who should be consulted
• Additional security. High-profile events often at an early stage. The security arrangements of the
require greater security measures, for example building should be tailored around their advice.
everyone may be searched before they enter the
ground, and this activity, along with the associated In general, lines for security cordons can be drawn
queuing, can take a great deal of space. around the sports building, firstly for vehicles fur-
• Temporary media areas including space for televi- ther away from the stadium and secondly for people
sion outside broadcast vehicles, rooms for sports as they have their tickets checked. The cordons for
writers to work, and associated dining, electrical staff and spectators are likely to require space for
generators and the like. Note that television sat- searching of people and their belongings.
ellite uplink vehicles will require a view of the sky
where the satellite is located. For more detail on these matters see Chapter 6.
• Additional back-of-house areas. The need for
extra offices, waste rooms, storage, ticketing, etc.,
3.6 Conclusion
should not be forgotten.
The matters above represent merely the first few
These areas will require space around the stadium
decisions in a process that will ultimately involve
and the best method is to keep the areas partly
hundreds of design judgements. But these are con-
flexible and non-specific so that it does not con-
trolling decisions, and once they have been ratio-
strain the layout of temporary accommodation,
nally made there should be regular checks to ensure
because, not only does every major event have dif-
that the evolving design never contradicts or moves
ferent requirements, but the overlay for each event
away from them.
is likely to change over time.
3.5 Security against terrorism
Unfortunately in recent years it has become nec-
essary to consider the possibility that high-profile
35

8. This page intentionally left blank

9. 4. External planning
4.1 Location 4.3 Provision of parking
4.2 Transportation 4.4 Stadium landscaping
4.1 Location a straggling queue, were inspired by our meth-
ods. We also demolished the signals. Towards
4.1.1 Past and current trends four o’clock the massed officials of the suburbs
Traditionally the sports stadium was a modest facil- mobilised the firemen to intimidate us . . . the
ity with a capacity of perhaps a few hundred, serv- mob, one knows, generally becomes inspired
ing a small local community and forming part of the when it is necessary to take action. As our train
social fabric along with the church, town hall and did not leave and other trains arrived in the
drinking house. night, filled with would-be spectators . . . we
set to work to demolish the station. The station
As communities grew larger and more mobile, with at Juvisy was a big one. The waiting rooms
ordinary people able and willing to travel great went first, then the station-master’s office . . .
distances to follow their favourite sports, stadia
became larger and much of the new capacity was The passage describes events at an aircraft show
needed specifically for visiting spectators. The pres- in France in 1933 and was written by the famous
ence of multitudes of ‘away’ supporters created architectural visionary, le Corbusier.1 Even allow-
problems in crowd control for which no one (whether ing for the habitual hyperbole of the author it shows
the local communities, their police forces, or sta- that the destructive impulse which may arise in
dium managers) was adequately prepared. We tend crowds of otherwise civilized sporting fans is, alas,
to think of this as a recent problem, but it goes back nothing new.
many decades. Evidence can be found in any book
of social history, or in an account such as this, made Crowd control proceeded on a ‘trial and error’ basis,
all the more astonishing by its source: and many mistakes were made; but we have finally
begun to evolve a more systematic understanding
along the track . . . were returning coaches. which can be applied both to the design of stadia
We conscientiously demolished them with and their management. The lessons for stadium
stones. We had broken everything breakable in design are incorporated in the various chapters of
our own train. The trains that followed, hastily
1
pressed into service and waiting behind us in Aircraft, Le Corbusier, Trefoil Publications, London.
37

10. External planning
Figure 4.1 The Arrowhead and Kauffman
Stadia at the Truman Sports complex, in
Kansas City, overcome the difficulty of
providing good viewing for the con-
trasting configurations of baseball and
football by giving each sport its own
dedicated stadium.
Photograph: Barry Howe Photography
this book; but an additional response has been a Arrowhead Stadium for baseball, and the Royals
locational one – to move major stadia away from Stadium for football.
town centres to open land on the town periphery. • The Giants Stadium at New Jersey, 1976, which is
a dedicated stadium for football only.
Large out-of-town stadia
These stadia tended to cater for a variety of activ-
A major trend of the 1960s and 1970s was the build-
ities to make them financially viable, had huge spec-
ing of large stadia on out-of-town locations where
tator capacities, and were surrounded by acres of
crowds, whether well or badly behaved, would cre-
car parking. They were built in a period when spec-
ate less disturbance to the everyday lives of people
tator sports were attracting markedly increased
not attending events. Such locations would also
followings, probably owing to the influence of tele-
reduce land costs and increase ease of access by
vision; but even so they found it difficult to show
private car. The largest developments of this kind are
a profit. Recovering their vast development costs
to be seen in Germany, where advantage was taken
would have been problematical anyway, but there
of post-war reconstruction opportunities, and in the
were two aggravating factors. First, television cover-
USA, where high personal mobility and the availabil-
age had improved to the point where people could
ity of open land made it easier to locate stadia away
stay at home and follow the action very satisfactorily
from the communities they were meant to serve and
in their living rooms; and second, the stadia of the
provide the amount of car parking required. Leading
late 1970s and early 1980s were all too often barren
examples of a cross-section of types include:
places with little by way of spectator comforts.
• The Astrodome at Houston, 1964, a dome stadium There was also a growing number of violent incidents
designed for both football and baseball. in various parts of the world (resulting from crowd
• The Arrowhead and Royals Stadia at Kansas City misbehaviour, fire or structural collapse) which prob-
(Figure 4.1), 1973, a complex which provides sep- ably reinforced people’s growing preference to watch
arate dedicated facilities for the two sports – the from the comfort and safety of their living rooms.
38

11. External planning
Figure 4.2 The Toronto Skydome (Rogers
Centre), which opened in 1989, can be
adapted by movable seating to several
auditorium configurations to accom-
modate hockey, basketball, baseball,
football, rock concerts and other enter-
tainments. Architect: Rob Robbie. Roof
design engineers: Michael Allen.
Photograph: Barry Howe Photography
Large in-town stadia there has been a formal report recommending major
The next significant step in the development of the changes to sports stadia to improve their safety.
stadium occurred in 1989 with the opening of the This document has caused many British clubs to
Toronto Skydome in Ontario, Canada. The public question whether it would be best to redevelop their
authorities in Toronto had recognized the problems existing, mostly in-town grounds or to relocate to
of out-of-town sites and decided to take a brave new sites out of town with all the transport and plan-
step by building their new stadium in the very centre ning problems entailed. Existing in-town sites have
of their lakeside city (Figure 4.2). the advantages of being steeped in tradition and
being situated in the communities on whose sup-
The stadium is within walking distance of most
port they depend, but the disadvantage of being so
of the city centre and uses much of the transport
physically hemmed in is that it may be difficult or
and social infrastructure of Toronto. They had also
impossible to provide the safety, comfort and variety
learned the lesson of poorly serviced facilities and
of facilities which are necessary. There are proving
incorporated many spectator services designed to
to be numerous town-planning difficulties in finding
enhance comfort and security.
new sites.
But in spite of all these efforts, and an ingenious
funding arrangement, Skydome’s financial viability The situation elsewhere in the world is equally
has unfortunately proved no better than previous ambiguous. Everywhere there is a preoccupation
attempts – see Section 1.1.2. with the intractable problems of financial viability,
everywhere there is pressure towards greater com-
Current trends fort and greater safety, and everywhere the refurbish-
In Britain, following an inquiry by Lord Justice Taylor ment of old stadia is gaining ground . . . but these
into the disaster at the Hillsborough Stadium in vague generalizations are about the only ‘trends’ that
Sheffield (where 95 people died in a crowd surge) can currently be identified.
39

12. External planning
Figure 4.3 The Galgenwaard
stadium in Utrecht combines
shops and other commercial
uses, located in the corners
and on the street side, with the
sports function. The stadium
was first built as a velodrome
in 1936; upgraded in 1981;
and completely modernized in
2001–03.
FCU photo/Frank Zilver
4.1.2 Locational factors Land cost
Today it is technically feasible to build a safe, com- Land costs must be kept to a minimum and this is
fortable and functionally efficient stadium in any why sports facilities are frequently built on low-grade
location (town centre, open countryside, or any- land such as refuse tips or reclaimed land that is too
where in between) provided that there is sufficient poor for residential or industrial use (but which may
land and that the stadium’s use is compatible with then lead to additional structural costs as noted in
the surrounding environment. The deciding factors Section 5.5.1).
are itemized in the following paragraphs.
Land use regulations
Client base Local or regional planning legislation must be
Any stadium must be easily accessible to its ‘client checked to ensure that the proposed development
base’ – the people whose attendance will generate will be allowed in that area.
the projected revenues, and this is usually the pri-
mary motive for looking at a particular site. To test 4.1.3 The future
feasibility a careful analysis must be made of who Taking all these factors together, wholly independent,
the projected customers are, how many they are, stand-alone stadia may increasingly have to share
where they live, and how they are to get to the sta- their sites with commercial and retail complexes.
dium. All these criteria must be satisfied by the pro- Examples of such developments include:
posed stadium location.
• In the USA, the Hoosier Dome in Indianapolis of
Land availability 1972.
A new stadium can require around 15 acres of rea- • In Canada, the Skydome in Toronto (Figure 4.2) of
sonably flat land just for the stadium and ancillary 1989.
facilities, plus car parking space at 25 square metres • In the Netherlands, the Galgenwaard Stadium in
per car (see Section 4.3.1). It may be difficult to find Utrecht (Figure 4.3).
this amount of space. • In Norway, the Ulleval Stadium of 1991.
40

13. External planning
• In the UK, the Galpharm (formerly the Sir Alfred authorities whereby they open a dedicated station
McAlpine) Stadium in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire. for the stadium. In the UK this is the case with the
This state-of-the-art 24 500-seat stadium will cater existing Watford and Arsenal football stadia, and a
for both football and rugby and share its site with new railway station was constructed to serve the
a hotel, a banqueting hall, a golf driving range and Olympic site at Homebush in Sydney.
dry ski slope, and numerous shopping and eating
facilities. The entire route, from the alighting point on the sta-
tion platform to the seat in the stadium, should be
easily usable by disabled people, including those
4.2 Transportation
in wheelchairs. Therefore it should be kept free of
kerbs or steps that obstruct wheelchair users.
4.2.1 Spectator requirements
If the journeys involved in getting to a sporting event
4.2.3 The road system
seem excessively difficult or time-consuming, the
The road system must allow easy access into,
potential spectator may well decide not to bother –
around and out of a major stadium complex.
particularly if alternative attractions are available,
There must not only be adequate roads, but also
as tends to be the case nowadays. There may be a
adequate electronic monitoring and control systems
sequence of journeys involved, not necessarily just
to ensure that any build-up of traffic congestion in
the journey from home on the morning of the match.
the approach roads can be identified well in advance
This sequence may start from the moment when the
and dealt with by police and traffic authorities (see
decision is taken to buy a ticket, possibly weeks or
Section 20.2.1).
months before the event, and involving pre-planning
the actual match day with details such as:
4.2.4 Information systems
• Will I be travelling with a friend or on my own? Before major events, advice can be mailed to spec-
• Will I be travelling by car, bus or train? tators with their tickets and car parking passes;
• Where will the transport leave from, and when? some information can be printed on the tickets them-
• How do I get to and from the transport? selves. In the run-up to the event, information giving
• What are the things which can go wrong with the the choice of routes and the most convenient meth-
above arrangements, and what alternatives do I ods of transport should be thoroughly publicized
have? via local, regional or national media (including radio,
television and the press).
The transport infrastructure of a major stadium
should offer ways of getting to (and away from) an
In the UK the Disability Discrimination Act places a
event which are relatively quick, unconfused and
legal obligation upon event managers to supply dis-
trouble-free, otherwise attendance and revenues will
abled persons – which includes people with impaired
undoubtedly suffer.
vision, impaired hearing, or impaired understand-
Pages 72 and 73 of Accessible Stadia (see Bibliog- ing – with information in formats that they can easily
raphy) give a useful checklist of matters that should read, hear, and understand. This obligation applies
be considered at this stage to ensure that all pro- to printed information, website information, tele-
spective spectators, able-bodied and disabled alike, phone information services, and all other methods
are able to properly plan their visit to a sporting of information dissemination both before and during
event. the match.
4.2.2 Public transport On the day of a major event every effort should be
Any large stadium should be close to a well-served made to ensure an orderly traffic flow. Local radio
railway and/or metro station, preferably with paved and newspapers can be used to illustrate preferred
and clearly defined access all the way to the sta- routes and potential problem areas. Dedicated road
dium gate. If the stadium cannot be located near signs, whether permanent or temporary, should start
to an existing station, it may be possible to come some distance away from the stadium and become
to a financial arrangement with the transportation increasingly frequent and detailed as the visitor
41

14. External planning
approaches the venue. Near to the stadium infor- Park and ride
mation and directions should be particularly plenti- This term refers to car parking provided at a dis-
ful and clear with ‘close-in’ information indicating tance from the venue, with some kind of shuttle
whether car parks are full, and identifying meeting service ferrying spectators between the parking
points and train and bus stations. The same amount area and the stadium. It is mainly used on the con-
of effort should be made to ensure a smooth flow tinent of Europe, especially in Germany. In the UK,
of people and cars away from the stadium after the Silverstone motor racing circuit and Cheltenham
event: it cannot be assumed that people will find racecourse have helicopter park and ride services,
their own way out, and a clear sequence of exit both of which are usually fully booked.
directions should be signposted.
Provision for disabled people
In the UK, pages 26 to 28 of Accessible Stadia and
4.3 Provision of parking section 4 of BS8300 (see Bibliography) give authori-
tative guidance on car parking provision for disabled
4.3.1 Types of provision people.
Parking is most convenient if located in the area
immediately surrounding the stadium, and at the For the USA see section 502 of ADA and ABA
same level as the exits/entrances. But this tends Accessibility Guidelines for Buildings and Facilities
to be an inefficient use of land – which is both (see Bibliography).
scarce and expensive in urban areas – and the vast
expanses of tarmac have a deadening effect on the 4.3.2 Access roads
surrounding environment unless extremely skilfully It is essential to provide the right number of park-
handled. Four alternative solutions follow. ing spaces and to ensure that they are efficiently
accessed, because nothing is more likely to deter
Multi-level car parking visitors from returning than lengthy traffic jams
Building the stadium over a covered car park, as before or after an event. There must be a clear sys-
in Cincinatti in the USA or the Louis IV Stadium in tem of routes all the way from the public highways
Monte Carlo, helps to reduce the amount of land via feeder roads into the parking area, and an equally
required and avoids the barren expanses of car park. clear way out. Arrivals will probably be fairly leisurely,
But such a solution is very expensive and its viability possibly spread over a period of two hours or more
may depend on the next option. before start time, whereas most spectators will try to
get away as quickly as possible after the event. Such
Shared parking with other facilities traffic patterns must be anticipated and planned for.
A stadium may share parking space with adja- It may also be possible to change these patterns
cent offices or industrial buildings as at Utrecht, or of use. For instance, visitors can be enticed to stay
even (as is the case with Aston Villa Football Club longer and leave more gradually, thus reducing traffic
in Birmingham, UK) with superstores or shopping congestion, by providing restaurants and other social
complexes. But problems will arise if both facilities facilities and by showing entertainment programmes
need the parking space at the same time. This is on the video screens before and after the event (see
quite likely in the case of shops and supermarkets Chapters 13 and 15 and Section 21.2.2).
which stay open in the evenings and at weekends.
In the case of Aston Villa there is a condition in the Parking spaces, and the routes feeding them, must
agreement that the store cannot open during first not encroach on areas required for emergency
team home matches. Therefore careful planning is evacuation of the stadium, or for fire engines, ambu-
required. lances, police vehicles, etc.
On-street parking 4.3.3 Spectator parking
This is not encouraged by the authorities. However, Vehicular parking can account for more than half
stadium sites in green parkland can allow parking to the total site, and the quantity and quality of parking
be distributed over a large area. provided will depend on the types of spectators
42

15. External planning
attending. Data given for a variety of existing • The amount of parking space needed per car or
stadia – not as guidelines to be followed, but purely coach. As more fully described below, car park-
to give a ‘feel’ of provision that may be required in ing may require about one hectare per 50 cars,
various situations. and coach parking perhaps one hectare per 10
coaches.
In the USA, where the shift from public transporta-
tion to travel by private car has gone furthest, the By researching the above data for a particular sta-
trend has been towards stadia located out of town, dium and multiplying the various factors a reason-
not served by any significant public transportation able ‘design capacity’ and parking area may be
network but surrounded by huge expanses of park- deduced.
ing spaces.
In Europe, by contrast, most stadia are well served Rival demands for parking space
by public transport. Land is not easily available for Some of the available parking spaces may occa-
large parking lots and it is quite common in European sionally be taken out for other uses, for instance by
cities, where the majority of European stadia are still television service coaches, which must be parked
located, for only a handful of parking spaces to be immediately adjacent to the stadium (see Section
provided for officials and for there to be no on-site 14.2.1). As many as ten vehicles, needing stand-
parking for fans. A rural facility, such as the UK’s ing spaces of up to 12m by 4m each plus working
Silverstone Circuit for motor racing, which caters for space, may be needed for several days at a stretch.
98000 spectators and provides parking for 50 000 This may greatly reduce the planned car parking
cars, is definitely the exception. capacity near the stadium.
In the design of a new stadium parking requirements
for spectators should be estimated from an analysis Cars: public parking
of the following considerations. For preliminary estimation purposes, and subject to
the computations suggested above, the following
formulae may be helpful:
Stadium seating capacity
It would be wasteful to provide car parking for every
seat in the stadium as the maximum seating cap- • A minimum of one parking space to every 10 to 15
acity will only rarely be achieved. A ‘design capacity’ spectators.
should be calculated by assessing a typical pro- • If FIFA recommendations are to be followed, one
gramme of events over a season, and estimating a space to every six spectators.
typical attendance for each event. • If recent German recommendations are to be fol-
lowed, one space to every four spectators. It must
be said that this will very seldom be possible in
Programme and types of events European urban situations.
Each event type generates its own particular pat-
tern of demand for parking. Some spectators will
come by public transport, some by private car and An area of about 25 square metres per car (including
some by specially hired fleets of coaches; the ratios circulation space) may be assumed in the UK and
between them will vary from one type of event to Europe. Exact dimensions will depend on national
another (in the UK, for instance, national football codes of practice.
club finals are likely to draw a higher proportion of
coach travellers). The amount of parking space
Cars: private parking
required will therefore be based upon:
Private box holders and their guests, VIPs and
• The ratios between the various categories. similar private visitors should have special clearly
• The occupancy rate of coaches and cars. It may identified parking areas, separate from the mass
be estimated, for example, that an average car car- parking, and close to the entrances giving access to
ries 2.5 people and an average coach 50 or more. private hospitality suites (see Chapter 13).
43

16. External planning
Buses and coaches closed circuit television (see Section 21.2.1).
FIFA suggests one bus space per 120 spectators, Sometimes this area is inside the perimeter fence of
but this is quite an onerous standard and will in any the grounds, which is acceptable if the zone inside
case depend on other factors (for example number the fence is large enough and out of reach of the cir-
of cars expected and access to public transporta- culation routes used by the public. Often this is not
tion); we suggest that one bus per 240 spectators possible, when it is recommended that all official
may be quite reasonable for preliminary estimation vehicles (except for emergency and essential service
purposes. vehicles) be kept outside the main perimeter fence.
An area of 60 square metres per bus (including cir- The media
culation space) may be assumed in the UK and Extensive areas must be provided for the increas-
Europe. ing numbers of television and broadcast vehicles.
As many as ten may be required for a single event,
Motorcycles and bicycles and factors to be taken into account are not merely
Provision will depend very much on national and their standings but also the widths of access roads
local characteristics and must be determined as part and radii of turning circles required by these large
of the brief. The demand for bicycle parking is likely vehicles. Their parking spaces may be incorporated
to be greatest in Asian countries, very much less in into the general parking areas, provided they are
the UK and Europe, and least in North America and adjacent to the cable access points provided (see
Australasia. Section 18.2) and able to bear the weight of the
heavy technical support trucks. Provision must be
Spectators with disabilities made for catering, toilet and similar support vehi-
In the UK, page 27 of Accessible Stadia and para cles adjacent to the technical vehicles, as media
4.1.2.3 of BS8300 (see Bibliography) recommend crews may spend long periods at the stadium before
that at least 6 per cent, but possibly more, of the and after events. These areas must be fenced or
total car parking capacity should be allocated to dis- protected.
abled people. In other countries local codes should
be checked. In the absence of more specific require- Provisionally a space of 24m by 4m should be
ments 1 per cent of car parking spaces may be an allowed per vehicle, and a level surface capable of
acceptable ratio. In all cases these should be the supporting up to 15 tonnes.
spaces closest to the stadium entrance gates, with
easy access to ramped pedestrian routes. Service and deliveries
A modern stadium complex requires heavy goods
4.3.4 Other parking access to many delivery and service points (cater-
ing, cleaning, etc.) and these must be identified in
Players
the brief so that direct and unobstructed access can
Parking space for team buses should be provided
be built into the scheme at the earliest stages and
for each team of players. Usually between two and
not come as an afterthought.
six bus spaces may be required, but FIFA recom-
mends at least two bus spaces plus ten car spaces:
4.3.5 Parking layout and services
the specific figure will depend on the sport involved
and should be researched. These spaces should Dimensions
always be secure and separate from other parking Dimensions of parking bays should meet national
areas and from each other, and give direct access standards, but for preliminary planning a bay length
to the players’ changing areas without coming into of 4.8m, and a bay width of 2.4m, would be rea-
contact with the public (see Section 20.2). sonable. In the case of parking spaces for disabled
people, bay length should be 6.0m rather than
Officials 4.8m, and each pair of bays should be separated by
Directors, sponsors and stadium staff should have an access zone of 1.2m, so that two bays have an
parking in separate, clearly identified and secure aggregate width of 6.0m rather than 4.8m, as shown
areas, under close supervision and control, including on figure 2 of BS8300 – see Bibliography.
44

17. External planning
Zoning area more easily and quickly. There should be highly
All user groups should have independent and easily visible waiting areas, sheltered, provided with infor-
identifiable zones in the parking area, which should mation boards and well lit. If possible communica-
be divided into blocks of roughly 500 to 1000 cars. tion links with the transport control centre should be
These blocks should be instantly recognizable by installed.
signs, numbering systems – devices such as colour-
coded tickets coordinating with colour-coded signs – Kiosks
and by attractive landmark elements which can be The routes followed by visitors as they walk from
seen and easily recognized from a distance. Varying their cars towards the stadium should be well pro-
surface treatments can also assist in partitioning the vided with kiosks where food, beverages, pro-
car park into separate zones. grammes and perhaps even tickets may be bought
well before the entrance gates are reached. Such
When marking these decisions bear in mind that decentralized sales points in the car parking area
spectators may arrive during daylight hours but start help reduce congestion at the entrance gates; they
looking for their car after dark when everything looks should be of an eye-catching design to ensure that
very different; that evening games under floodlights they are noticed. Such kiosks, if well-designed, can
mean arrival and departure in darkness, requiring add to the leisure atmosphere and even serve as
good lighting of all parking areas. ‘markers’ to help people memorize where their cars
are parked.
Pedestrian routes
On leaving their cars, spectators should be able to
Lighting
proceed directly to a safe pedestrian passage which
All parking areas should be uniformly lit, with no
feeds through the car park to the stadium entrance
dark patches, to allow easy ingress and egress and
gates. This distance should preferably be no more
to create a safe environment. High mast lighting is
than 500 metres, or an absolute maximum of 1500
likely to be chosen for this purpose, provided it is
metres. If distances become too great there should
aesthetically acceptable and does not cause annoy-
be an internal transport system of regular pick-up
ing overspill into adjacent residential areas.
and drop-off buses, in which case waiting areas
must be provided, and (as above) very clear signs
Separate pedestrian walkways, designed into the
provided so that spectators do not get confused.
parking layout to provide clear walking routes
between stadium gates and distant parking spaces,
Signage
should be well lit, probably with low-level local lumi-
The importance of signs has been raised in the
naires chosen particularly for their suitability to this
preceding paragraphs and a summary of the main
purpose.
points might be useful.
At each entry point to the parking area there should Telephones
be signs guiding visitors to their individual park- There should be a good provision of public tele-
ing positions. When they have parked and left their phones along the outer periphery of the car park in
cars or coaches there should be further boards tell- case of vehicular breakdown.
ing them where they are, and guiding them towards
their viewing positions. The correct perimeter access Overspill
point must be clearly identified. Similar provision If the site is unable to accommodate the total num-
should be made for spectators leaving the stadium ber of cars required, or if certain individual events
to guide them back to their vehicles quickly. demand a greater number of spaces, additional
parking facilities should be identified in the local-
Public transport waiting areas ity. These can include fields, parks and play areas.
An efficient internal transport system around the car The effects of cars parked on these surfaces should
parks reduces overcrowding of the spaces close to be considered, particularly in open-field conditions
the stadium, and allows visitors to leave the parking during the winter or in wet weather.
45

18. External planning
Figure 4.4 The Hong Kong
Stadium, which was redeveloped
from the old Government Stadium
and opened in 1994, is an example
of an urban stadium surrounded
by greenery. Architects: HOK
Sport Architecture.
Photograph: Kerun lp
4.3.6 Parking landscape between adjacent blocks of car parking spaces to
Car parks can be barren-looking places cast- soften the space when observed from eye-height.
ing a spell of bleakness on their surroundings and A third might be rows of tall, slender trees lining
detracting from the spectators’ enjoyment of their the main radial access roads and marking their
visit unless very great care is taken. A comprehen- positions for drivers. Where climate allows, grass
sive landscaping plan must be devised to reduce surfaces can with great advantage be incorpo-
the visual impact of these great expanses and to rated in such a surface pattern.
give them some humanity. At the same time, a well • Each of the paved areas formed by such subdiv-
thought out scheme can help to define the parking ision should be flat and true, separated (if the site
zones and the vehicular and pedestrian routes which contains substantial differences of level) by neat
intersect them. ramps and low retaining walls; it should not be a
great undulating expanse of tarmac untidily fol-
The key to success is mental attitude: stop seeing lowing the natural ground contours, as is all too
the car park as a piece of ground to be covered in often seen.
asphalt, but see it rather as a great outdoor floor • For rainwater run-off each paved area should be
that must be planned and designed as carefully as laid to fall to gulleys or drainage channels. The
the stadium itself. The following suggestions may ridges and valleys should express the pattern
help to achieve this: established by the first suggestion above, instead
of zigzagging across the site along the lines of
• The paved surface could be subdivided into areas least resistance.
that would form a neat and attractive pattern as • Changes of level should be designed to pedestrian
seen from above – perhaps a radial configuration rather than vehicle standards, and there should
centred on the stadium. One element in the be no risk of tripping owing to uneven surfaces
formation of such a pattern could be a geometric or sudden changes of level, particularly at dan-
layout of paved driveways and walkways set into ger points such as drainage gulleys and channels.
the lower-cost general surface and contrasting Routes used by disabled people must avoid steps.
with it, say, bricks or interlocking pavings set in an • Details at edges and verges should be particularly
asphalt surface. Another might be the planting of carefully designed, and formed in good quality
regular rows of dense car-height shrubs or trees materials.
46

19. External planning
Figure 4.5 The Oita Stadium (see also Figure 5.14
and Appendix 3), which opened in 2001, is a spectac-
ular out-of-town venue set in open green landscape.
Architects: Kisho Kurokawa and associates.
• The materials and construction methods should Most countries now have environmental protec-
be selected to minimize maintenance, offer a good tion legislation for both town and country. They also
walking surface, and look attractive. Tarmac is have increasingly aware and assertive communities
commonly used and is cheap, but it will not give who will vociferously object to bulky-looking new
an acceptable result unless carefully subdivided, buildings (particularly if these are likely to generate
articulated and trimmed at the edges. Bricks and traffic and noise) perhaps even preventing their con-
interlocking pavings offer a superior (but more struction, or at least forcing expensive modifications
expensive) finish but even they will not give an to the design. Therefore, not only must very careful
attractive result without careful design. attention be given to the form of the stadium and the
• Part-concrete, part-grass surfaces for vehicles way it is blended into the landscape, but additionally,
combine the visual benefits of grass with the load- officials and community representatives should be
bearing strength of a road. One type uses pre-cast consulted and involved from an early design stage
concrete units with large openings through which and ‘carried along’ as the design develops, with
the grass grows, these units being laid like ordi- the problems and the preferred solutions explained
nary pavings. A second type is formed by light- to them in jargon-free language. To do otherwise is
weight, air-entrained concrete being cast in situ to risk a refusal of planning permission entailing a
around polystyrene formers which are then burnt heavy loss of time and money.
away leaving apertures for the grass to grow
through. These surfaces are usually best where 4.4.2 Planting
use is occasional (for example access roads) There are stadia, particularly in the USA, which have
rather than continuous, because oil drips and virtually no planting as a conscious part of the over-
heavy use may kill the grass. all site philosophy. Pontiac Silverdome in Michigan
is one. Another is the Three Rivers Stadium in
Pittsburgh where the approach has been to allow
4.4 Stadium landscaping the structure to be seen for miles around. The siting
of the Three Rivers Stadium at the junction of the
4.4.1 The stadium in its surroundings rivers which flow through Pittsburgh is certainly one
Stadia are major developments which can enhance of the most striking to be found anywhere, particu-
the surrounding environment or blight it. Attitudes to larly when approached from across the river.
such environmental impact vary around the world,
with the most protective approach found in Europe – On the other hand, planting can greatly ameli-
partly no doubt because of its limited amount of orate the problems of scale and unfriendly-looking
green space. finishes sometimes associated with sports stadia
47

20. External planning
and can make almost any stadium look better. The of Wimbledon as the singles finals, and the devel-
35 000-capacity Cologne Stadium in Germany (now opment plan which is to take this venue into the
demolished) provided a particularly good example, twenty-first century very consciously retains and
being set inside a large sports park and surrounded builds on this image.
by foliage so thick that it was possible to be beside
the building and virtually not see it. As a more recent The following are particularly effective locations for
example, the stadium for the 2000 Olympics in plants.
Sydney is partly surrounded by an ‘urban forest’ of
eucalyptus trees. Such measures can have a soften- Site boundary planting
ing, and very pleasing, effect on what are often very Site boundary planting can soften the visual impact
large concrete buildings. The Hong Kong Stadium of a large stadium development on its environment,
(Figure 4.4) is fortunate enough to be located in a making the buildings seem smaller and perhaps less
lush green setting. gaunt. Such planting can also help protect the sta-
dium from the neighbours and the neighbours from
However, planting is expensive both in initial cost the stadium, and form the transition between the
and in maintenance, particularly in places (such as outside world and the stadium precinct while also
sports stadia) where vandalistic behaviour may occur highlighting the positions of the entrances.
from time to time, and few stadia can afford large
maintenance bills just for the care of plants. Possible Car park planting
precautions include: As drivers approach the car park, tall slender trees
lining the main radial access routes can help them
• Planting mature trees and shrubs and protecting find their way in; and once they are inside and walk-
them for as long as possible with frames. ing towards the stadium tall rows of trees can simi-
• Establishing a plant nursery on the site (assuming larly help them locate the pedestrian routes. Lower,
there is enough space) which is inaccessible to denser rows of planting can be used to separate
the public and where plants may grow unhindered adjoining blocks of parked cars from each other,
until they are strong enough to risk the attention of softening the view as one looks across the acres of
the crowds. hard, bare landscape. These configurations of tall
• Concentrating the planting in those areas where it and low planting should add up to a functional and
will be most effective, as discussed below. pleasing total design.
Above all landscaping and planting should not be Buffer zone planting
left as an afterthought at the last stages of a proj- The principal buffer zone is the transition between
ect, as happens all too often. They should be part of the stadium building and the car parking area –
the masterplan, planned and adequately budgeted Zone 4, as described in Section 3.3.2. At least part
for from the very beginning. The ideal is a landscap- of it should be hard paved or grassed to act as an
ing masterplan in which trees which will take several assembly area if required, but the remainder can
years to grow to maturity are planted immediately, be trees, shrubs or even flowering plants, the latter
protected during their vulnerable years, and are fully particularly near the main entrances.
effective when the stadium comes into use. Mature
trees can also be purchased from nurseries, trans- Concourse planting
ported to the site and planted, but this is expensive. Concourse planting is used inside the stadium
perimeter to help define circulation patterns and to
In summary, it is difficult to have too many trees on help screen the structure. Because these areas will
a stadium site, but we very frequently see too few. In be crowded with people we recommend planting
some cases the planting becomes the focus of our that is hardy, with no foliage lower than about two
attention: who would think of the Championships at metres. In addition to being less prone to damage,
Wimbledon, for example, without a mental image of trees or shrubs with foliage only at higher levels do
the green virginia creepers covering the main ele- not obstruct vision, which is an advantage in circula-
vations of the buildings? They are as much a part tion areas.
48