IT’S interesting to read once more of the apparent priority attached to the revitalising of the high streets around the country, which has been expressed by the main political parties. (SNP pledge to put more cash in Scottish high street recovery, April 3).
However, I wonder if the people concerned have actually considered the many reasons why high streets are being neglected by customers who are choosing the various retail parks, mainly around the outskirts of the towns.
I have been told one of the reasons why our local town centre, Kingdom Centre, in Glenrothes has so many vacant lots is down to the rental prices charged. I have no personal knowledge of this but it’s what I’ve been told.
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However, there is no food supermarket in the building any more. OK, Home Bargains has a food section and Iceland is still there, but the likes of Lidl, Aldi, Morrison’s and Asda are all around a quarter to a half mile away from the centre. Even M&S has chosen to build its food store outside the centre instead of taking a place within it; and even Farmfoods has also moved outside of the centre, to a spot close to where M&S is situated.
Kingdom Centre does have the benefit of free parking and an adjacent bus station, but bus services generally are not convenient. I’m almost an octogenarian and have been diagnosed with COPD. To go for food shopping by bus involves walking about 150 yards uphill to the nearest bus stop; or downhill for about 400 yards to the next nearest bus stop. Because I couldn’t manage to carry a couple of heavy bags of shopping 400 yards uphill, I am restricted to the nearest bus stop which offers an hourly service. That gets me to the town centre. Then I can either walk around quarter of a mile, or take a second bus, to reach the food stores. The entire round journey takes me about 2.5 hours.
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Going by car, I can do it in half that time and am much closer to the shops, and to my home when I return, for carrying my shopping. Consider also that when going by bus I have to restrict myself to two carrier bags of shopping. Whereas going by car I can stick four or five bags in the boot and save a double journey. But going by car means I do bypass the town centre and only go there for specific items of shopping.
If you look a bit further afield and consider the likes of Kirkcaldy town centre, then you discover that the bus station is at least 100 yards from the High Street. There is also a very steep hill between the bus station and the High Street, meaning a laborious climb with your shopping after you have purchased it. The High Street is about a mile long and is pedestrianised, so you can neither get a bus nor a car to a convenient spot for shopping. Also, since Tesco moved away, there are no food supermarkets in the entire length of the High Street. All the parking areas for cars are chargeable, with a minimum charge of around £1.15 for the first hour and doubling after that. All of them are also a fair distance from the shops.
On the other hand, Morrison’s at the far end of the promenade has free parking right on the doorstep. Chapel Retail Park, on the northern edge of the town, has Sainsbury’s for food and a wide range of other shops including chemists, furniture shops, electrical appliance shops, DIY stores, clothes stores, and others, including fast food restaurants, plus free parking. Buses stop on the main road outside the retail park so, again, you have several hundred yards to walk carrying heavy bags of shopping. Therefore, it’s no wonder people choose to use Chapel Retail Park over the High Street, and to go there by car rather than by bus.
If the politicians do really want us to restart using the town centres, then they must make it convenient for people to go there. At least one bus route passing along the High Street, with frequent stops to allow people to jump on or off, would be a start. Couple that with convenient free parking and you might get somewhere. But there has to be a reason for people to want to go there, like a cheap food supermarket. If there’s no reason to go, then people won’t go. It’s that simple.
Charlie Kerr
Glenrothes
IN an article by Heather Graham in The National on Saturday, the government plans for assisting the recovery of the high street were outlined. The suggested ways of spending money were essentially to give money to the businesses through rates rebates, regeneration spending as well as (god help us) creating “20-minute neighbourhoods”. Better to invest in something with potential long-term benefits.
The high street needs activity to bring people who can then discover what the high street has to offer. Mini festivals and other activities on a regular basis can provide a lively environment for the shopping areas. These would support retailers, food outlets, arts organisations and artists and performers. Support for organising these events would go a long way toward creating the lively vibe the high streets need.
Another development would be for a government-supported internet shopping website that would encompass local Scottish independent businesses, allowing them to compete with Amazon and the multinationals. The businesses could put their products on the site to be searched as a single business, an area for people to visit, or with similar products from other Scottish businesses. With government support, the listings by businesses could be free and a small sales commission for online purchases could help with administration and to recover some costs. There would need to be training available at a low cost or free to encourage the local businesses to take advantage of the opportunities.
This is not completely new territory. It could be built on the ideas of the craft markets that already exist. This would be a continuing asset with development driven by the local businesses, rather than a simple temporary subsidy.
Stephen Richard
Glasgow
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