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Plan To 'de-Pedestrianise' Paisley


billyg

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Free parking is a must for starters. You know I see Wishaw going the same way as Paisley in some regards. Councillors here are spending silly money making very similar mistakes to those that were made in Paisley - especially with their bizarre idea that a pedestrian precinct is needed to serve the 100 metre or so run from Poundland, past a plethora of take away shops, down to Frank Roy's Constituency office. I guess he must be getting so fat these days that he needs more than just a pavement....:rolleyes: They've started to convert a lot of the parking bays into bays for the sole use of North Lanarkshire Employees - something that has sparked a fair bit of anger - a move designed to ensure council employees have a place to park for free when the remainder of the car parks becomes pay and display.

I drove through Paisley today and I have to say regardless of the history of the town it looks like a f**king dump. No matter where you go it's damned unattractive and it must be one of the few towns in the world that looks better gloomy and dark than it does when the sun comes out.

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Free parking is a must for starters. You know I see Wishaw going the same way as Paisley in some regards. Councillors here are spending silly money making very similar mistakes to those that were made in Paisley - especially with their bizarre idea that a pedestrian precinct is needed to serve the 100 metre or so run from Poundland, past a plethora of take away shops, down to Frank Roy's Constituency office. I guess he must be getting so fat these days that he needs more than just a pavement....rolleyes.gif They've started to convert a lot of the parking bays into bays for the sole use of North Lanarkshire Employees - something that has sparked a fair bit of anger - a move designed to ensure council employees have a place to park for free when the remainder of the car parks becomes pay and display.

I drove through Paisley today and I have to say regardless of the history of the town it looks like a f**king dump. No matter where you go it's damned unattractive and it must be one of the few towns in the world that looks better gloomy and dark than it does when the sun comes out.

You are quite correct but the problem is getting out of hand now. Almost every town in Scotland suffers from this and it's getting beyond a joke. Falkirk, Dunoon, Paisley, Kirkcaldy, Glenrothes, Cumbernauld.....the list is endless. I meant to post a photo of the entrance to the main shopping precinct in Glenrothes. It needs to be seen to be truly believed. It's a horror show and there isn't anyone anywhere in a position of power or influence who seems capable of sorting it.

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my plan for paisley:

1. blow up the piazza and open the river again.

2. turn old building in the centre into town houses and offices so there are more people in the centre on a daily basis.

3. develop the riverside with shops, cafes, bars to service the people in the area.

then go from there.

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You are quite correct but the problem is getting out of hand now. Almost every town in Scotland suffers from this and it's getting beyond a joke. Falkirk, Dunoon, Paisley, Kirkcaldy, Glenrothes, Cumbernauld.....the list is endless. I meant to post a photo of the entrance to the main shopping precinct in Glenrothes. It needs to be seen to be truly believed. It's a horror show and there isn't anyone anywhere in a position of power or influence who seems capable of sorting it.

Hmmm, I don't remember Cumbernauld, Kirkcaldy, Dunoon or Falkirk as being anything other than run down hovels - and although I don't think I've ever had reason to visit Glenrothes the place has never had much of a reputation as far as I can remember. Paisley at least used to be a busy and bustling town at one point in my lifetime.

It's not all gloomy in Scotland. I've been to Peebles a number of time over the last 30 years but, to my mind at least, it has never looked better than it did when we went there in September. I know that Go Ape and all the money invested in Glentress Forest has had a big impact on tourist figures down there but the transformation looked amazing to me. Moffat is another wee town that appears to make the most of it's historical assets, and it might just be the bits that I get to visit through athletics but that parts I see of Dumfries certainly make it look much better than most other Scottish towns - certainly better than most in the central belt.

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Paisley (and all towns) need to be creative. There is no point competing with purpose built out of town malls for retail, town centres can't win. In any case, more and more shopping will go online, the Internet isn't going to go away! Towns need to focus on pubs/restaurants and quality local produce. As well as offices and residential property around the town centre.

Eta: just realised oaksoft said almost the exact same thing but far more eloquently!

Edited by BLF
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I would start with getting rid of the smack heads and the drunks that seem to be allowed to loiter all over the town centre and put people off going anywhere near it. They argue ,fight and aggressively beg right under the noses of the so called wardens and police and very little is done about it. This coupled with the mountains of black bin bags all over the place on a Monday morning make the place look like something out of Mad Max.

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my plan for paisley:

1. blow up the piazza and open the river again.

2. turn old building in the centre into town houses and offices so there are more people in the centre on a daily basis.

3. develop the riverside with shops, cafes, bars to service the people in the area.

then go from there.

All of the above.

Bring the Costa Clyde closer to the town centre.

To not have apartments along the river is a missed opportunity.

We should consider how close, distance wise, we are to the universities in Glasgow.

Rents in Glasgow's west end and city centre are high.

I know it will never happen, but if there was a direct rail link into Glasgow that crossed the Clyde and travelled along the north side of the river and ran through Partick it would boost Paisley as a satellite town.

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All of the above.

Bring the Costa Clyde closer to the town centre.

To not have apartments along the river is a missed opportunity.

We should consider how close, distance wise, we are to the universities in Glasgow.

Rents in Glasgow's west end and city centre are high.

I know it will never happen, but if there was a direct rail link into Glasgow that crossed the Clyde and travelled along the north side of the river and ran through Partick it would boost Paisley as a satellite town.

Good idea. Especially if it ran up through Renfrew and then crossed. Not sure if we still need to keep the clyde navigable for ships, but a new swing bridge could work. Perhaps for trains and cars. I like it. It is big infrastucture projects like this that will have the most impact, just as big infrastucture projects like the piazza, one way system, pedestrianisation and the north west by pass had the biggest (negative) impact in the past.

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.... big infrastucture projects like... pedestrianisation and the north west by pass had the biggest (negative) impact in the past.

That tends to be convenient excuse, albeit a non-substantiated excuse. Feel free to answer my post above. Can yo uprovide us with a business case for re-opening the High St?

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I would start with getting rid of the smack heads and the drunks that seem to be allowed to loiter all over the town centre and put people off going anywhere near it. They argue ,fight and aggressively beg right under the noses of the so called wardens and police and very little is done about it. This coupled with the mountains of black bin bags all over the place on a Monday morning make the place look like something out of Mad Max.

Well said that man !

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All of the above.

Bring the Costa Clyde closer to the town centre.

To not have apartments along the river is a missed opportunity.

We should consider how close, distance wise, we are to the universities in Glasgow.

Rents in Glasgow's west end and city centre are high.

I know it will never happen, but if there was a direct rail link into Glasgow that crossed the Clyde and travelled along the north side of the river and ran through Partick it would boost Paisley as a satellite town.

That's a fabulous idea.

Paisley is ideally situated for 3 universities plus presumably a few colleges as well.

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You are quite correct but the problem is getting out of hand now. Almost every town in Scotland suffers from this and it's getting beyond a joke. Falkirk, Dunoon, Paisley, Kirkcaldy, Glenrothes, Cumbernauld.....the list is endless. I meant to post a photo of the entrance to the main shopping precinct in Glenrothes. It needs to be seen to be truly believed. It's a horror show and there isn't anyone anywhere in a position of power or influence who seems capable of sorting it.

It's not just a Scotland issue, I was travelling to Milton Keynes with work via train and changed over in Crewe and had an hour to spare. The town centre of Crewe made Paisley look like London.

With large shopping centres and their free parking small town centres need to really re think what they are and what they can offer.

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That tends to be convenient excuse, albeit a non-substantiated excuse. Feel free to answer my post above. Can yo uprovide us with a business case for re-opening the High St?

What was the buisness case for pedestrianising it in the first place?

I'm not going to write/quote a planning essay on the value of opening up access to the high street, but do a quick count work out the occupancy rate on Causwayside and on the top of the high street, bridge street and compare it to that on the pedestrainised Moss street and high street.

do the maths...... yir sel ya lazy bazzer.

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so much shite from so many hypocrites. get oot yer car and walk. oh, i need tae park 5mins from the shops, what am i going to do: f**kin' walk. pedestrianisation has had little affect on shopping; braehead and silverburn, has.

Not being able to easily park for free is one of the biggest reason.

Do you think shouting at them will fill the town centre again?

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Perth has a very nice pedestrian area in the town centre and the high street shops are largely filled with independent traders. Paisley could learn a lot although admittedly, Perth does not have to compete with Braehead and the likes!

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What was the buisness case for pedestrianising it in the first place?

I'm not going to write/quote a planning essay on the value of opening up access to the high street, but do a quick count work out the occupancy rate on Causwayside and on the top of the high street, bridge street and compare it to that on the pedestrainised Moss street and high street.

do the maths...... yir sel ya lazy bazzer.

The reason for pedestrianising the place in the first place was to provide a public realm befitting of the town. In the mid 90's the town was actually a horribly congested, polluted and dangerous place to shop. It was not a pleasant experience, and any move to return to that is a step backwards, a very large step. You ask for the business case, it was clearly to provide a safe and comfortable environment for people to go about their business and to provide a space that could be used for puclic events. Other than your rather crude and flawed count of shops on Causeyside St I've not seen a single credible piece of evidence that even suggests pedestrianisation was the cause of the demise of the town centre, let alone any evidence to suggest the re-introduction of cars would boost trade (these are two distinctively different points). The quality of public realm is Paisley town centre is actually exceptionally good, given that it has been down for coming up on 15 years.

I never asked you to write a "planning essay", I specific questions to assertain whether or not you were aware of the relevant facts on which to base a decision. I'm guessing, by your ainability to answer those questions, that the answer is simplly "no" to each one of them.

Like I say, if there is a credible business plan or any credible and substantial research I'd love to see it, my position may well change. But until then it is a crazy scheme going over old ground which will cost a considerable aount of money for little or no economical benefit and will make Paisley Town Centre a less desireable place to shop.

Edited by civilsaint
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so much shite from so many hypocrites. get oot yer car and walk. oh, i need tae park 5mins from the shops, what am i going to do: f**kin' walk. pedestrianisation has had little affect on shopping; braehead and silverburn, has.

abysmal town planning has had as much of an effect tbh.

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