Thiepval Memorial Access

[Paul Reed]

Following my other thread about the closure of the memorial, I thought members of the forum might like to know that vehicle access to the memorial has recently changed. The commune of Thiepval have restricted parking away from the normal parking area, directly at the entrance, to the parking in the grounds of the Thiepval Visitors Centre.

This means that all cars, coaches and other vehicles must now park in the center's parking between 10.00 - 17.00 every day. You cannot park in the old location without the fear of a potential visit from the police (and thus a fine?).

This means that all visitors will have to walk through the centre to get to the memorial, and then back again. This greatly increases the distance people have to walk. This poses problems to anyone with a coach group that has people who have walking difficulties.

I was able to drop my group off at the old entrance this week, and then go round to the center's car park; I was told this was 'acceptable' but I don't know how much longer you will be able to do it, or how and if they will inforce this ruling.

I must say I am personally less than happy with this, but the law is the law.

[ianw]

Paul,

I can't say I recall how much parking the centre has. Is there any danger of not

being able to park at Thiepval during busy times ? Is the ban permanent or just during the cleaning process ?

[stiletto_33853]

Paul,

Thanks for the heads up on this, are they making any allowances for disabled people or people with walking difficulties.

Andy

[Paul Reed]

Paul,

I can't say I recall how much parking the centre has. Is there any danger of not

being able to park at Thiepval during busy times ? Is the ban permanent or just during the cleaning process ?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

No, this is a permanant measure and has nothing to do with the cleaning. From now on, during those times, you will ONLY be able to park at the centre. Any other parking is technically illegal. Only time will tell if it is enforced.

[Paul Reed]

Paul,

Thanks for the heads up on this, are they making any allowances for disabled people or people with walking difficulties.

Andy

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

There are disabled parking areas in the center's car park, but none at the memorial entrance. The new ruling seems to apply to everyone.

[Rob Gray]

Parking may well be a problem at the Visitors Centre - i've been there 4 or 5 times since it's opened and the car park has been full of cars each time, and cars have taken to parking in the bays reserved for coaches - hardly satisfactory.

Rob.

[Paul Reed]

Just bumping this up, as I am sure it will be of interest to many members of the forum.

[ianw]

I must confess that I can't see any good reason for this restriction. The old parking area is far enough away from the memorial to maintain it's dignity. A cynic would suggest that this is a way to give the centre better "ownership" of all the visitors to Thiepval. I wonder if the CWGC has a view on this ?

[paul guthrie]

I was just there and do agree with Ian. It is a bit of a problem for those with limited mobitilty I think. The center itself is unobtrusive and pretty well done.

[Paul Reed]

A cynic would suggest that this is a way to give the centre better "ownership" of all the visitors to Thiepval.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I have contacted CWGC and they have looked into to it to discover that the local by-laws have indeed been changed. They have no control over the roads etc in front of the memorial, and suggested I contacted the mayor of Thiepval to see if it will be possible to drop people off at the old entrance.

[Tom Morgan]

I can see that the local authorities have control over traffic using the roads and stopping/parking on the roads. But I thought that the area we are talking about belongs to the CWGC and is their designated set-down parking area for visitors to the memorial. Not part of the local road network at all.

Tom

[Terry Denham]

Tom

I think you will probably find that CWGC's land only extends to the outside edge of the surrounding wall and the parking area is local authority property.

[Tom Morgan]

Tom

I think you will probably find that CWGC's land only extends to the outside edge of the surrounding wall and the parking area is local authority property.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Point taken, Terry. But it always looked to me as if the CWGC had deliberately and cleverly built the curved wall so as to place some of its land outside the walled precincts of the Memorial, for car-parking. I assumed that the "line" of the CWGC land was the line of the fences on either side of what I'll call the car park, and the car park was within that line.

Tom

[Paul Reed]

Like you Tom I had always assumed that the parking area was part of the site. It seems this is not the case, however.

[Tom Morgan]

Like you Tom I had always assumed that the parking area was part of the site. It seems this is not the case, however.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Looks that way, Paul. I must say though, I think they may be on a loser!

Tom

[Terry Denham]

When the site was built there was no requirement for a car park!

As with most of their cemeteries, I think the wall will mark their boundary.

[ianw]

Even when conceived and built , it would have been anticipated that motor transport (charabancs etc) would be taking pilgrims to the site and I presume that the entrance was designed very early on to accomodate these vehicles. Of course, this does not necessarily mean that the parking area is part of the Thiepval site proper but the CWGC records would no doubt confirm this definitively.

Of course, even if the CWGC did have technical ownership of the car park area , they still might not choose to attempt to go against the wishes of the local powers that be. I presume this parking initiative was requested by the new Thiepval centre management ?

[Tom Morgan]

When the site was built there was no requirement for a car park!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I'm not so sure that I would agree. My thinking (totally without any supporting evidence!) is:

When the CWGC started its work in the imemdiate post-war years, it's true that there were very few cars around.

But by 1932, when the Thiepval Memorial was completed, there were millions of cars on the roads. There was also a well-established "tourist trade" involving bigger vehicles such as motor-coaches and taxis. By the time the CWGC arrived at the completion of this, its last major memorial site to the Great War, it must have been obvious that lots of visitors would be arriving in motor-vehicles. Especially so given the number of commemorations on the memorial and its stature as a significant "must see" building in its own right. In this case, I think that providing somewhere for vehicles to set down, turn round and park would have been quite a logical part of the original layout.

Tom

[Paul Reed]

I think they must have had cars and vehicles in mind; this is a photo of the entrance we are talking about taken during the unveiling ceremony in 1932:

[ianw]

Can't help but think that this is a way to establish "ownership" of the car park area

and to establish the new visitor centre as the "turnstile" controlling access to the Thiepval Memorial. Of course, one could park in the centre car park and directly walk up to the memorial (assuming there are parking spaces) but such behaviour will inevitably play into the hands of those commentators that feared that the development of the visitor centre would see centralised bureaucratic control freakery unleashed.

No more will we see the magnificent spectacle of bleary-eyed , sleep-befuddled Pals levering themselves out of their cars at 6am on July 1st in the memorial car park , to make a pre-attack pilgrimage to the mist-shrouded,owl inhabited Holy of Holys. Shame.

[KIRKY]

Paul what a great photo, which one is you?

tony

[Paul Reed]

Paul what a great photo, which one is you?

tony

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Glad you liked it, comes from a collection relating to the unveiling of the memorial. I will be placing some of them on a new website in the near future.