| Comment | Most of the other cities that have removed motorways from their centre already have ring roads around the perimeter, drawing most long-range traffic away.
The original plan was for Glasgow to have another two ring roads, plus numerous radial routes. If even half of that was in place, then downgrading the M8 would possibly be an option. As it stands, there's no chance of doing it without complete gridlock.
The M74 doesn't count, as it only covers one half. A journey from, say, Easterhouse to Whiteinch, would have to be done on surface streets. You could wave a magic wand and build the best public transport network in the world, and still have more than enough vans and trucks clogging neighbourhoods. Having an elevated motorway running through a city isn't great, but it's better than the same traffic sitting idling in jams outside schools, shops, and houses.
Yes, do what needs done to mitigate and soften the impact of the road, but getting rid of it isn't a sensible option. |
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