An on the spot blog written by Alasdair Meldrum during a recent wander in Glasgow’s City Centre.
I had a wee wander up Sauchiehall Street at the weekend, one of the main streets in Glasgow city centre.
My mind drifted back to late 80’s when I arrived in Glasgow for my first year at University of Strathclyde. I was lucky enough to get a place in, (to some) the legendary Baird Hall, but this did involve a regular traipse up and down Sauchiehall Street. The two things I can vividly remember was firstly it never seemed to stop raining – typical west of Scotland weather and secondly the street was being pedestrianised and work was ongoing for the length of the street.
The pavement is largely in tact and in good condition and I did wonder if this was the original pavement or whether it had been replaced since. In any case apart from the odd section where work had gone on and had been randomly filled with cement or tarmac, the overall pavement was in good condition.
But what really drew my attention was it was just dirty! It just looked like it had not been brushed or cleaned for months or even years. In fairness it was largely litter free, but it could have been so much better, especially when you looked at the corners and under street furniture. I’ve been in cities abroad where they wash and polish the streets – and what you notice is the public take note and respect the space!
On the way back down I spotted this forlorn sign “In Glasgow we bin our gum”!
I think this was largely wishful thinking looking at the state of the street.
So it did get me pondering ‘Should Chewing gum producers pay towards cleaning the blight that their product produces?’ (https://www.circularonline.co.uk/news/75-of-british-consumers-support-ban-on-plastic-chewing-gum/). And also how much of our poor attitude to litter in Scotland is down to councils not doing the basic work to keep our streets clean and tidy! In fairness to councils they have had their budget squeezed and squeezed as street cleansing is not viewed as essential.
On the way back down I noticed there is a current plan to refurbish the street, but we also need a plan to –
– regularly wash and clean the street – grime attracts grime!
– a massive Chewing gum removal exercise (at the same time a public shaming campaign for people who litter Chewing gum)
– make sure any repairs and replacement of the damaged sections are done so they blend back in
With the trees just going into bud, Sauchiehall street could be sparkling again by the end of spring!