A shopping paradise? (Other Retail Parks and Discount Warehouses)

Member Name: chocoholic

Product:	Other Retail Parks and Discount Warehouses
Date:	16/07/00 (30 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: It can provide a great day out

Disadvantages: Bad for town centres

Most eople say that the Trafford Centre (Manchester) is a 'Shopping paradise'. I'm not so sure though.
This new multi-million pound shopping centre, that took nearly two decades to complete, has taken custom from Manchester's shops, which are already suffering from the IRA bombing a few years ago. However, the effect on other businesses is not only felt locally, but on all town centres in the North West and even further afield,with similar complexes such as Meadowhall in Sheffield.
The result of this is that many local shops will go out of business, which would eventually force people to travel to the big centres. The money people spend at the Trafford Centre can only be money they would have spent elsowhere.
Another negative view on the Trafford Centre, is the congestion it is causing on the M60. Most people who use the M60 to get to Manchester are following a schedule, which was usually kept to. This has now been altered as the amount of traffic around the area has dramatically increased, therefore delaying people who are working to a strict timetable. All this new traffic is not only causing queues, but lots more pollution.
Although the people who desinged the Trafford Centre made a big attempt to make it look attractive, I believe that something so large can not be anything but a blot on the landscape. Although unlikely, it could also cause accidents at night, if people are looking at the blue dome and not the road.
Providing public transport to the centre to meet demands is also causing problems. A new metro-link is desperately needed, but nobody can agree to who should meet the costs.
As well as shops, the centre has a huge entertainment complex which opens late at night. This has huge implications for local residents. Local towns and villages have their own individual facilities. Local communities can take pride in organising and providing these. Large out of town complexes like the Trafford Centre will cause these to b
e lost. It also provides a place for troublesome teenagers to meet and cause riot.
So the Trafford Centre is not only causing a loss for parents (as the mother and father of the young child who died after falling through unsafe railings found out) but for businesses, people working to strict timtable and local residents.
But ending on a brighter note, it does provide a great night or day out.

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