Urban Glasgow Case Study

1. URBAN GEOGRAPHY
Case Study : GLASGOW

2. Site & Situation
 Site – where the original settlement has
been built
 Situation – where it is in the surrounding
area
 “A city is both geography and history; it is
the expression of what people have done
with a place through time. Geographically, it
springs from situation and site. More
precisely a city is the site at which the
situation has significance; it is the choice of
site which successfully exploits it situation.”

3. The Origin and Growth of settlements
 Most large cities have developed in a
location where both the site and the
situation have been an advantage.
 The site was often the original reason
for a settlement to develop, whereas
the situation may explain why a
settlement remains small or grows
into a town or city.

4. Settlements were usually built on particular sites
which were advantageous to early dwellers :
 Defensive Sites – on a hill, surrounded by
water
 Route Centres – where valleys meet, the focus
of routes
 Bridging Points – an easy place to cross a river
 Wet Site – Close to water in a dry area
(springlines)
 Dry Site – On higher, dry area close to wet
land e.g. marsh or flooding rivers
 Gap site – sheltered between 2 hills
 Aspect (occasionally) – the position in relation
to the sun may have been important in upland
valleys

5. Classification
 All settlements can be identified in the pyramid
below – a hierarchy !
Megalopolis
Large City
Small City GLASGOW
Large Town
Small Town
Village
Hamlet
Individual Building e.g Farmhouse

6. Reasons for choosing a site changes
through time !
 Pre 1750
 Good Defence
 Close to water supply
 Close to woodland
 On useful farmland
 Sheltered site
 Flat land or suitable building site
 Good communications

7. Continued…
 After 1800
 Close to resources (raw materials)
 Close to Ports
 Faster communication
 Pleasant Environment

8. GLASGOW – Site & Location
 Glasgow began on the North bank of the River Clyde.
This was a bridging point over the River which meant
that it became a route centre.
 Although on the flood plain of the Clyde, a large drumlin
swarm gave dry point sites for early important buildings
e.g. Cathedral and University.
Glasgow
University
Glasgow
Cathedral

9.  The river provided fishing and allowed
transportation (although the river was shallow)
 However, the deepening, straightening and removal
of rock bars (blasting) in the early 1800s was to
lead to the rapid growth of the city as a Port trading
with the empire.

10.  The growth of the railways and building of the canal
further added to Glasgow's excellent transport Network.
This network in turn influenced the whole of Western and
Central Scotland (Sphere of Influence)
 In addition, Glasgow possessed the important raw
materials of the Industrial Revolution, coal, iron ore and
limestone.

11.  This lead to its rapid growth as an industrial city
(Industrial Revolution & WWII) the main products were
ships, heavy engineering, textiles and chemicals. This
meant that Glasgow had a narrow industrial base and
would lead to major problems once these markets
declined (competition!)

12.  Since then Glasgow has changed more than any other
British city (with regard to Function) but these changes
have been largely successful and Glasgow is not a
renowned city in areas such as culture, administration/
finance & shopping.

13. FUNCTIONS OF GLASGOW
 Originally began as a route centre and bridging point.
It grew as a market town, religious centre and
educational centre.
 It remains important as an industrial town. It provides
recreation and leisure services for its population and
its hinterland.
 It has become a popular tourist city (city breaks,
conferences & exhibitions).
 It is an important shopping centre and is Scotland's
main (jointly with Edinburgh) administrative centre.
 It was once a port although no longer important the
river fronts have stimulated development.

14. Landuse Zones in Glasgow
 CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRCT (CBD)
What can you see from the
OS map that suggests that
this is the CBD of Glasgow ?

15. CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT
 Accessibility both to the rest of the city and the surrounding
area (convergence of roads/railway) and usually near the
oldest part of town perhaps beside a castle/cathedral
 It will vary in size depending on the size of the city.
 An area of interacting landscapes and is usually dynamic
(changing) with the exception of the historic core.
 High land values - upward growth of buildings
 Location may change through time e.g. Originally at the
High Street to George Square, Argyll Street and Sauchiehall
Street
 Grid Iron Street pattern

16.  High maybe multi storey buildings – must build up!
 High density of buildings
 Lack of open space
 Large Department Stores, modern shopping malls
and pedestrian precincts
 Offices, banks, Town Hall
 Cinemas, theatres, clubs
 Bus and Railway stations
 Busy traffic flow and pedestrian flow
 Multi storey car parks

17.  The main land uses include retail outlets, these vary from :-
 High turnover department stores e.g. Debenhams, John
Lewis, House of Fraser and the top national stores e.g. M&S.
They occupy many floors have large frontages (display) and
prefer corner sites to maximise pedestrian flow. They have a
wide range of goods, large workforces and depend on a high
turnover (shoppers!)
 Specialist Shops e.g. clothing, jewellery, games, shops etc.
These offer customers the potential to compare shops –
items usually portable
 Food & Drink Outlets (convenience shops) can either cater
for shoppers/city centre workers or for evening visitors.
e.g. tobacconists, cafes, newsagents, fruit shops, book
shops, music shops ( highly specialised).

18.  Also found are the main HQ of Insurance offices, banks,
travel companies and local government. e.g. TH
 They can be easily accessed by workforce and clients.
 Accessibility- For the same reasons there is a
concentration of theatres, restaurants, exhibitions.
 Residential Population – Overall population density is low
(high property prices) difficulties with parking, pollution
(noise) and the size of properties
 Other Users – Transport termini (buses/trains), colleges
and universities, green space e.g. George Sq, certain
industries (fashion/publishing) and on the edge of the
CBD – schools, churches (many changed purpose) and
hospitals.

19. Traffic – Pedestrian/Vehicle
 Roads and pavements make up the
largest proportion of the CBD
 Usually grid iron
 Pedestrian flow high especially at peak
times
 Major congestion problems at rush
hours

20. Here are some examples of features
you'd find in Glasgow:
•high/multi-storey buildings - Hilton Hotel
•modern shopping mall/pedestrian precinct -
Buchanan Galleries
•lack of open space - Merchant City
•department stores - Frasers
•cultural/historical buildings - Gallery of Modern Art
•entertainment - Royal Concert Hall, Cineworld
•transport centres - Buchanan Street Bus Station
•multi-storey car parks - Buchanan Galleries
•grid iron street pattern - Sauchiehall Street, Bath
Street, Renfield Street
•rush hour - M8/Kingston Bridge

21. Old Inner City Zone Factories/Housing GR5665
What can
you see to
suggest
that this
is the old
Inner city
zone of
Glasgow ?

22. Why were inner city areas built
surrounding the CBD?
 Old heavy industrial factories were near the city centre
market.
 Low cost housing like tenements were built quickly for
poorly paid workers who needed to live close to work.
 People in poor inner city areas were able to make use of
city centre amenities.

23. Old Inner City Zone Factories/Housing GR5665
Look carefully at the slides of Glasgow can you spot the
following features ?
 Features Include:
 Canals/railways
 Breweries, bakeries, engineering
works, textile factories
 Old factories and houses were built
during the 19th C when people
walked to work (no cars) little open
space left between the buildings
 The street pattern is often grid iron
 In Scotland - housing is
tenements; in England terraces
 Problems - overcrowding, poor
sanitation due to buildings more
cheaply built than in CBD

24. Inner City Areas – problems led to
redevelopment
 Located, in older cities, near the centre and surrounding the
CBD. Inner city areas are identified by physical features and
often by negative socio-economic features:
 high density of buildings and lack of good quality open space
eg. parks
 older,19C low-cost housing - likely to be tenements in
Scotland and terraced housing in England
 slum housing
 derelict land
 old declining industry
 a declining population with high unemployment
 large areas of re-development or urban regeneration
 limited convenience shopping facilities
 high levels of air pollution from traffic, and visual pollution in
the form of vandalism and graffiti
 areas demolished and used for motorways and ring roads

25. Re-Generation Schemes
 Many inner city areas have now been improved
through urban re-generation schemes. Think of
examples you know from your own area.
Improvements in areas like The Gorbals and Govan
on Clydeside, in Glasgow, include:
 new housing, such as high rise flats
 renovation of older housing, often tenements
 environmental improvements by landscaping,
improving docklands
 attracting a mix of inhabitants for example, by
introducing luxury flats
 increased employment opportunities by opening
restaurants, leisure centres and government offices
such as the Scottish Office
 upgrading shopping areas and improving road links

27. * TODAY* many of these areas are being
redeveloped again
 Many multi stories knocked down (damp), social
problems
 Areas have been landscaped and new homes built
(tenement style again) to encourage people back to
living in the inner city

28. Suburbia
 Substantial growth in the last 50 years.
 Located on the outer fringes/outskirts of urban areas
 Expensive modern homes (often detatched/semi-
detatched/front & rear garden/off street
parking/garages) Low density
 Close to the green belt (woodland/
recreation/water/farmland/parks)
 Room for expansion but increasing pressure and conflict/
increasing value of land and costs
 Accessible by road for commuting into CBD or along
modern ring road network to other towns/industrial
estates/science parks
 Street patterns with local roads separate from through
traffic, cul-de-sacs, crescents
 A range of suitable services (health clinics/local
convenience shops and small shopping g areas/golf
courses/parks and schools

29. Suburbia (Council & Privately Owned) – Car Based
 Younger buildings than in CBD
 Street pattern - crescents and
cul-de-sacs (dead ends); this
slows down traffic to make the
streets safer
 More detached and semi-
detached houses; as the land is
less expensive people have
gardens
 Less factories than the inner city
 More open space and parks
 Many people commute from here
to work in shops and offices in
the C.B.D.
 Less pollution than the centre of
the city

30. Satellite Estates
 Due to urban regeneration schemes many new estates were
built in the 1950/60s on the urban fringe to help people move
away from poor housing conditions in the Inner City.
 Examples in Glasgow include : Easterhouse, Castlemilk
Here many new homes have been
built to replace those built in the 50s.

31. New Industrial Areas – On the Outskirts of
the city
 They have modern factories with
car parks
 The factories are laid out in an
orderly fashion -they are planned
areas
 The buildings are usually lower
than in the old industrial areas
 The areas are landscaped with,
trees, bushes, flowers and grass
 They are kept apart from the
residential areas
 They found close to good road
transport links
 Less pollution than the centre of
the city - electricity is almost
always used as the power source,
and there are very few chimneys

32. Glasgow Example
 Hillington Industrial Estate was built in the 1950s to
encourage new business o Glasgow after the decline of heavy
engineering. It was at that time on the outskirts of the city.
Today it is surrounded by housing.
Then
Now

33. Greenbelt / Urban Fringe
 Established to “check the unrestricted sprawl of built-up areas
to safeguard the surrounding countryside from further
encroachment and to prevent towns merging into one
another.”
 The open area of the land is preserved for farming and
recreation.
 Planning permission is not usually allowed for building but
pressure is on green belt to release land to create more
housing, industry and communications.
You can see clearly the
pressure that is on the green
Belt surrounding Glasgow!!

34. Traffic Congestion - Causes
 Many people working in the C.B.D. which may
have narrow streets
 Shortage of off-street parking which means
people park on the roads and so increase
congestion
 People not using public transport - either because
it is less convenient, too expensive or not
available
 More people own and use cars

35. Traffic Congestion -Solutions
 Ring roads and by-passes; these can be unpopular as
countryside around towns and cities are lost when they are
built
 Park and Ride - you park your car on the edge of the built up
area and then ride a bus or train into the C.B.D.
 One way streets to speed up traffic flow
 Multi-storey car parks
 Banning cars from the from the C.B.D., either with
pedestrianised streets (e.g. Buchanan Street in Glasgow) or
by stopping them coming into the city centre at all. Cars are
banned from the centre of Milan (Italy) on Sundays.
 Charging car drivers when they enter the city centre