Children were left crying at Manchester’s Trafford Centre today after fights broke out and motorists were left stuck in the car park for over five hours.
Congestion at the shopping centre was so bad yesterday that some cars were left unable to leave their parking spaces, which bosses blamed on a combination of seasonal visitors and traffic heading to Manchester United’s home game against Newcastle United, three miles up the road.
One visitor, business administrator Cody Fisher, found himself trapped in a parking space after going to see Wicked with his boyfriend, healthcare worker Lewis Moran.
The pair said it took them over an hour to find a parking spot after arriving at midday, and when they emerged at 3pm traffic was so bad they found themselves totally stuck.
In the end Cody, 18, and Lewis, 20, were unable to even pull out of their parking space for nearly five hours as hordes of cars piled up in the Trafford Centre. Cody described how as time went on tensions, and tempers, began to ramp up.
Cody said: ‘We went to the car and everyone was on the road, and the engines were turned off. We thought that’s a bit weird.
‘Then 20 minutes went by, and another 20 minutes went by. When we got to about 6.30pm, 7pm, that’s when people starting getting really annoyed.
‘We noticed that people have started opening the gates that are usually closed, to let more cars out.’
But things soon got even worse, as people’s anger and frustration bubbled up to the point that people began scrapping in the parking lot.
Cody told the MEN: ‘It was like throwing hands at each other. It was this lady and another lady, the first lady had a child with diabetes.
‘They were screaming “we’ve been here five hours”, and “we’re not letting you pass”. Everyone started shouting saying stop being so selfish – I’ve never seen anything like it, it’s a Christmas nightmare.’
After being stuck for five hours, people gave up and just remained in their space. Cody said: ‘It was about five hours. We just decided that we’re going to go back to our car parking place, because we just got sick of it.
‘We edged out of the space, about 30cm. I’ve got voice messages of people screaming. There’s swearing, verbal abuse.’
Natalia Suska, 33, and her partner Piyush Sheopuri, 31, had gone to the Trafford Centre to pick up a Pandora order and got stuck. Piyush said: ‘People have parked up on the footpath and the grass as well.’
Natalia told the publication: ‘We’ve been here two hours. I’ve never experienced something like that, even the day before Christmas. It wasn’t that bad, we’ve been here on the 23rd and it was busy but not that much.”
The Trafford Centre has said that the delays are due to a combination of factors including seasonal crowds and the game at Old Trafford.
A spokesperson for the Trafford Centre said: ‘With a busy day at the centre, and the Manchester United game taking place nearby this evening, the roads in and out of the centre are more congested than usual.
‘We’re working with Greater Manchester Police and the highways authorities to try and clear the roads as quickly as possible, so things should be moving better around the centre soon. We appreciate our visitors’ patience whilst trying to get in and out of the car parks.’
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