Should the CC provide Motorhome Aires?

Wanderbirds

For those not familiar with the name it is the French term for motorhome dedicated parking areas where one is permitted to sleep overnight.  There are other types including  isolated service points. It is the former type that I believe the CC should create.
  In Germany they are called Stellplatz.  There are thousands of them, of various types, all over Europe; France has almost 8000; Germany almost 5000; Italy around 1500. Some are free though this becomes less common year on year and I do not want the club
and its other members to subsidise my camping so I would anticipate CC Aires to be fee paying and self financing.  Aires do not need the huge parcels of land required by campsites nor do they need to be staffed. Often the motorhome bays are only a metre or
two wider than the van.  In France it is illegal to "make camp" on an Aire, that is put up an awning or even set out tables and chairs, though many do provide some grass for the latter. 

 

What might a CC Aire look like and how might it operate? Access to public transport should be essential in many cases, next to "Park and Ride" schemes as at Canterbury would be ideal.  As for size this would be as appropriate; in France we have stayed
on Aires with 2 to 200 places.  They would be entered through an automatic barrier with the use of a "smart" membership card, once inside motorhome parking bays are set out. It would have drive over grey water disposal and a "borne" (motorhome service point).
Electricity could be provided though not through individual points as seasoned Aire users generally carry at least 50m of cable. There could be no booking and stay would be limited to 1, 2 or perhaps 3 nights.  To leave the Aire the member would swipe their
membership card which is preloaded with credit, the fee debited and the barrier opened.  Initial entry would be denied to those without enough credit on their card. Using a preloaded card means no cash to collect or be stolen.  Facilities would be monitored
by user members and maintained by local contractors.

 

What is in it for Caravan and Trailer Tent owning members?  If the Club started with Aires near bottleneck sites like Baltic Wharf and Rowntree Park etc this would help to free up pitches for these members.  If 40% of members own motorhomes it seems to
be the cheapest and most cost effective way to put some slack into the sites system and allow many of us to go back to the "good old days" when touring was possible and the Club magazine was called "En Route". It is one possible part of a solution to the December
booking day "feeding frenzy" and the cheapest way to make more pitches available to all members at weekends.

 

Worth a try?  What do you think? 

 

Do you support this idea?

 

Carl