SUNDERLAND’s leading shopping centre is proving it’s a good sport – by offering free parking to SAFC fans heading to Wembley this weekend (31 March).
Around 40,000 Sunderland supporters are heading south to Wembley to see the Black Cats take on Portsmouth in the final of the Checkatrade trophy.
And now the Bridges is giving the team some support of their own, by allowing fans travelling by coach or train the opportunity to leave their vehicles at the multi-storey car park for free.
Anyone who parks at the Bridges can show their match ticket to the car park office and will be given a free exit pass they can use on their return, which they can also collect ahead of the day.
And the centre has also extended its normal car park hours to allow those heading to Wembley to leave their vehicles in the early hours of Sunday morning and pick them up any time up to 11.30pm on Monday.
The decision to introduce the scheme was the result of a suggestion by a shopper who asked the centre to help the many fans heading to the game.
“This is such an exciting day for the whole city and it’s fantastic that so many supporters are going to Wembley, hopefully to see SAFC win the trophy,” said Andy Bradley, Centre Director at the Bridges.
“We wanted to do our bit as well and hopefully this will be really helpful to fans who are travelling either by train or by coach.”
The Bridges multi-storey will open at 4am on Sunday and will remain open all the way through until 11.30pm on Monday, giving fans lots of time to reclaim their vehicles.
Exit tickets can be collected from the car park office at the entrance to the car park in advance by pressing the intercom.
Spaces will be allocated on a strictly first come/first served basis.