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Key questions. What are the main issues facing Swansea’s CBD? What are the solutions to these issues?. Issues facing Swansea CBD. The main issues facing Swansea CBD are: Congestion, accessibility and transport issues. Retailing – ‘Clone towns’ and decline of CBD retailing.
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Key questions • What are the main issues facing Swansea’s CBD? • What are the solutions to these issues?
Issues facing Swansea CBD • The main issues facing Swansea CBD are: • Congestion, accessibility and transport issues. • Retailing – ‘Clone towns’ and decline of CBD retailing. • Office and entertainment district issues.
Traffic congestion at the River Tawe bridges Where east - west flows meet north - south flows
Park and Ride Scheme – A solution to the traffic congestion issue? There is a £2 charge per car which includes all –day parking and return bus travel for up to 4 people. The Bendy bus! A new solution?
Modernised public transport – Central Bus Station and the Rail Station The Council demolished the old Quadrant bus station in June 2009. The new bus station includes 20 bus bays, three coach bays, a modern passenger waiting area, as well as retail units, toilet facilities and Swansea Mobility Hire. 2011 New-look Swansea station opened after £7.6m upgrade - 2012
Decline in retail in the CBD. The rise of the clone town – Swansea is starting to look like any other city centre around the country.
CBD RETAILING - competition from out of town Retail Parks Fforestfach Retail Park to the NW of Swansea – more affluent suburbs; car owners Morfa Retail Park in the Enterprise Zone near the Liberty Stadium
CBD RETAILING – competition from other cities • But what has added to Swansea's city centre retail problems is the opening of the £675m St Davids shopping centre in Cardiff two years ago which attracted 36m visits in its first year
CBD RETAILING – competition from the Internet Online trading in general represented 18.6% of total non-food sales for the final month of 2013, an increase from 16.5% a year earlier. Amazon has a ‘fulfilment centre’ (warehouse) in Swansea
Solutions Swansea Business Improvement District or BID, is a co-operative of businesses that together fund improvements to the city centre. City Centre Rangers are employed to monitor litter and graffiti around the shopping areas .
Office and entertainment districts • There is currently over 11,000 square feet of office space available to rent in the centre. • Differences between day and night, as well as weekdays and weekends.
Solutions? • More houses/apartments built in office areas. • Making office space more attractive. • Closure of Wind Street to traffic on weekend evenings. • Police patrols and taxi issues.
Key questions • What are the main issues facing Swansea’s CBD? • What are the solutions to these issues?