Glasgow Inner Ring Road

[Flyingscot]

Funnily enough was talking about the inner ring road today. I happened to work in traffic for a bit this year doing various bits and pieces. You have to say as "wrong" as it was Glasgow doesn't have as much traffic problems as some cities, at least congestion in Glasgow is predictable! I always like how the show all the drawings in sunshine- most things look good in thee sun, but it's a shame it isn't always like that- the true test is whether it looks good in the pissing rain! Hence the problem with public transport!

New road projects were effectively banned in the 1990's by Tories and Labour who made it hard to plan them. Now we are seeing that easing off now, and you can justify roads easier now. We have seen the much needed M77, GSO, and will see the M80 and M74 very soon. I'm almost certain they will happen and that protests will fail, they have planned too far now, and have other schemes like the Kingston Bridge Bus Lane, for when the M74 opens. The M80 already has it's service areas planned and trust me they wouldn't have given the KLR Kirky Link Road and the Auchinkilns the go ahead if they weren't extending it. It will not by-pass Cumbernauld either no matter how many people want it to- they spent money on Auchinkilns for a reason!

Actually GCC hasn't dropped the inner ring road yet either, but is too busy wasting money on Streamline and stupidly thought out bus priorities. With a bit of thought it could have proper roads!

Come to think of it motorists may be surprised how little is actually spent on improvements by councils. The majority of improvements, are actually done by developers! St.James Interchange, Butterbiggens Road, Berryknownes Road, etc. all private money!

[Closet Classicist]

With a bit of thought it could have proper roads!

Yeah that would be urban and pedestrian friendly Boulevards please. Not 1960's timewarp urban space eater motorways carving their way through our city thanks.

[Apollo]

Just a very broad observation given the 2 references noted in the above posts.

The designers, architects, engineers etc. that would have been responsible for the 60's featured mentioned, would have been trained and educated in the aftermath of the 30's period following the visions in Metropolis.

[govanboay]

I just can't get into 60's architecture, town plans or redevelopment at all. I think existing examples should be dynamited right now!! It's all soulless shite and that includes St Peter's seminary. Even today we are doing away with classic Victorian buildings and replacing 'em with glass and wood crap. It is a vision of hell really all these pics and vids.......

[Bella Houston]

Found it!! >clicky< Compare this with the British Pathe image, striking similarities. Note also the line of the "Arterial Road"

The North Station was in the Bruce Plan in 1945. Also note that the Pathe film is dated 24 March 1949. Here's an extract from vol 1 p27 of the Bruce Plan:
"New Railway Stations - Some very important changes are proposed affecting the four main railway stations. These are -
(1) The provision of a new station, to be called the North Station, on the site of the existing Buchanan Station, combining that station with Queen Street Station (excepting the Low Level Queen Street Station); and
(2) The provision of a new station, to be called the South Station, having its southern boundary at Cumberland Street, combining the Central Station and St. Enoch Station (excepting the Low Level Central Station)."

[Bella Houston]

More info from...

http://www.bestlaidschemes.com/moviezon ... d-tomorrow

"Glasgow Today and Tomorrow
Date: 1949
Director: d. Erica Masters
Ref No: 3158
Genre: sponsored
Film For Hire: No
Video For Sale: No
Sound: sound
Running Time: 7.57 mins
Fiction: Non-Fiction
Colour: bw
Original Format: 16mm
Sponsor: sp. Planning Committee of The Corporation of Glasgow
Production Company: p.c. Moviegram Films Credits: w. & p. Charles-Dean ph. Ivan Barnett ed. F. J. Jacobs Additional Information: Glasgow in the post-war years and the Corporation’s futuristic plans for the city’s development. The film was made to tie in with an exhibition of the same title, held at the Kelvin Hall in Glasgow and relates to the post war Bruce plan for redevelopment of Glasgow city centre"

[dazed_and_confused]

Brilliant website! I'm still looking round it now.....

[Alycidon]

Nice find - promptly added to Favourites!

[AlanM]

Stumbled across a selection of DVD's in the new Silverscreen store in Braehead the other day.

Auld Glasgow

and two others the titles of which I can't remember, one was pre-war and one post-war which contains the footage refered to above.

Alan

[crusty_bint]

I bought the pre-war one for my grn for her Christma last year but ended up keeping it for myself The footage was good, lacking in commentary though. In fact, it was a wee bit boring... even for me! It was ok.

[red_kola]

I'm deligted to see that the Inner Ring Road ihas been promoted to a starring role on the Pathetic Motorways website which is a strangely compelling read given the inherent anorakiness of the subject matter.

Anyhow, M8 stuff can be found here with a wonderful frightening AA-style roadmap of just how things could have ended up here.

[HollowHorn]

More info from..

http://www.bestlaidschemes.com/moviezon ... d-tomorrow

Brilliant site, BH. Quite chilling in some places. I found the one with the girl singing the wee protest song over the footage of demolition, very sad.

And thur pullin' doon the buildin's next tae oors,
and thur sendin' us tae green belts, trees an' floors.
But we do not want to go,
and we daily tell them so,
while thur pullin' doon the buildin's next tae oors.

[glasgowken]

Are there any other websites covering the Bruce plan ?
I did a Google, but nothing came up

[motman]

The book that contained all of this stuff was called 'A Highway Plan for Glasgow' by Scott, Wilson and Kirkpatrick, consulting engineers, around the mid 60s. I remember borrowing it from the Uni library on Oakfield Avenue when doing a geography project at Hillhead in the late 60s to make little models of the Kingston Bridge and the CharingX trench. The 2 things that scared me the most (an engineer in the making at 17?) was the umpteen lane highway from the Kingston Bridge to the M77/M8 junction, and the M74 junction on stilts above Glasgow Green: I never thought that they would happen, but lo! the M77 did years later, the other has now been reinvented further south.

The Great Western Road plans were indeed scary - a souped up Clydeside Expressway.

[My Kitten]

Found this one

http://hc110-2.blogspot.com/