Car parking fees will kill off the city centre
LAST week ,I was effectively banned from entering the centre of Manchester.
I have lived in Manchester all my life, some 40 plus years now. Yet, when I wanted to visit the stores and coffee shops, I found I could not get anywhere near the city centre.
I have read with interest how the high street is dying. Large chains such as HMV, Clas Ohlson, House of Fraser, and now Patisserie Valerie have all fallen by the wayside. Debenhams and Marks & Spencer look next to be on the chopping block.
These are some of the most famous stores in Manchester – Debenhams has long been a fixture of Piccadilly.
And yet when I wanted to go into town and spend my (very) hardearned cash, I found I could not. Why? The answer is the ridiculous parking costs in the city centre.
Normally, I park way outside the city centre and walk in. Although this can be exhausting, it’s worth it to avoid the exorbitant parking charges. Lately, however, I have found that even these areas are charging a fortune. A tiny space I found where there are no parking restrictions after 3pm (I’d tell you where it is but it’s a closely-guarded secret) has a notice on it from the Council announcing that within the year these will be gone as well. Overnight, the cheapest car parks put their fees up by £1 an hour. Now it is impossible to park in the city centre (or near it) for less than £4.50 for two hours. In two hours you cannot do anything, or risk having to race back to your car in case an overzealous parking warden gives you a ticket.
To put that in perspective, parking in Manchester is more expensive than parking in Los Angeles. Even in Manhattan, parking is free on Sundays.
Does the council not realise that people cannot afford to pay these outrageous charges? Some of these charges are private car parks - but who let them be built? There is a huge free parking space on Great Ancoats Street (it used to belong to Mothercare, Toys R Us, JB Sports and Curry’s - until they shut down as well). But concrete blocks have been dropped there to stop people entering, forcing people to go elsewhere. Perhaps if I was a councillor, on more wages than the Prime Minster of this country, £4.50 would mean nothing. But not all of us are so lucky.
It seems you will now get only two types of people in the city centre – those who are willing to take the bus or tram (I have no intention of doing that, I spent 9 years taking public transport through some of the worst areas in Manchester and still have the scars to show for it) or those gentrified urban professionals who live in those monstrous tower blocks in Ancoats.
Let’s hope those two groups can keep the High Street going. From now on I intend to keep well clear of Manchester city centre. By all accounts it won’t be long before there’s nothing to go there for anyway. The Voice of Reason
Maths didn’t stop Noel
REGARDING Anthony Price’s email on Noel and Liam (M.E.N, Viewpoints, February 6)
Noel was in my class at St Marks; his birthday is three weeks after mine in May.
At St Marks (now Barlow) we were ‘streamed’ into classes so the name MARKS was used; I was in 1R with Noel. Unfortunately, the streaming system was unkind to Noel who was moved into ‘K.’ MAR were considered the ‘top’ streams whereas K and S the ‘bottom’ streams.
I don’t recall a teacher named Maclure for Maths. Mr Bradley (affectionately known as ‘Bean’ Bradley) and Mrs Kirk were the two maths teachers for our year.
I am sure Noel didn’t care about being ‘streamed’ to K class; he was always destined for greater things! Alex Speed, St Marks RC High1977-1982
Government causes stress
ON February 5 the M.E.N. reported that the Government would be funding mindfulness lessons in schools so that schoolchildren could learn how to relax.
Isn’t this the same Government that has contributed to young people feeling stressed because of its obsession with results?
What a brave new world we have created when young children have to be taught how to relax. We should be looking at how our society puts them under pressure and how social media plays a part in causing so many of them to succumb to despair, self-harm and even suicide. Let’s show them some care and help them to develop their self-worth, regardless of what they look like or dress like or how many A grades they have. D. Savio, Salford
We’re all in this together?
AS one of those who voted for Brexit could Mr Tusk please inform me of which part of hell I can look forward to? Because myself and millions of others voted the same – will we all be together?
Something else he should consider is the fact that he should get there first, because all of us Leavers and a lot of people currently living in Europe at the moment will be ready to pass an opinion on him when he gets there. John Martin, Prestwich