Eurovision Song Contest 2023

[Barney]

RE: Eurovision Song Contest 2023

(18/04/2023 11:46)H101GEV Wrote:  I have to point out that Eurovision is not the biggest event in Liverpool city centre since the Millennium. Nowhere near.

Somewhere between 50,000 and 100,000 seems to be the expectation across the Eurovision event. Of course, the overall attendance may exceed this but it will still pale in comparison with others. The Three Queens event in 2015 managed 1.3 million visitors and the three Giant Spectaculars had 1.5 million, 1 million plus and 800,000 people. The Liverpool F.C. trophy parades, large portions of which were in the city centre, saw approximately 1 million in 2005, 750,000 in 2019 and 500,000 in 2022. Outside the city centre, more than 150,000 regularly attend the 3-day Grand National meeting at Aintree in a relatively confined location, far in excess of the Eurovision predictions.

Of course, I would like to see night buses return to Liverpool but a one-off event like Eurovision is no gauge to potential demand. They are at least offering late trains on the Merseyrail network to all destinations except Ellesmere Port until around 0130.

The examples you have given were all daytime events and this event will still be going on well after the last bus has left.

I agree that a one-off event is not truly indicative of potential demand but since 2010 this region has relied on the availability and willingness of taxis to transport people home after midnight. If towns such as Brighton and Nottingham deem it worthwhile to operate night buses, it begs the question why Liverpool doesn't.