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An urban design approach was used to show how Reading city centre could be shaped in the future. The quality of streets and public spaces was seen as crucial, and emphasis was given to how the centre could be better connected and integrated with the areas immediately surrounding it.
Attention was given to how the severance caused by the inner distribution road (IDR) could be overcome. This was seen as key to both the expansion of the centre, and integrating the centre with the surrounding areas.
Although a fairly large part of the centre was pedestrianised, key streets were used by numerous bus services, which were judged to have an unacceptable impact on the shopping and leisure environment. Whether or not bus services should penetrate the centre or be relocated to the edge of it would be a question of balancing accessibility with environmental quality. Comparison was made with Dusseldorf, where buses and trams do not penetrate, despite the larger size of the centre (see diagram to the right).
Parts of the final report are available to the right.
Update
A city centre Action Plan was adopted in 2009 and this can be found here.
| Location | Reading England |
|---|---|
| Date(s) | 2001 |
| Client(s) | Reading Borough Council |
| Team(s) | Llewelyn Davies planning and urban design, David Walton (Project Director), Tim Pharoah, and others |
keywords
City centre, town centre, regeneration, access, transport, traffic, Reading
