Drawing_on_What_You_Have_Learned_About_City_Road,_Outline_Some_of_the_Inequalities_on_a_Street_That_You_Know.

Drawing on what you have learned about City Road, outline some of the inequalities on a street that you know. Albert Road is a popular street in Southsea offering by day; shops, schools and restaurants but by night becomes popular for the music venues, theatre, bars and take-away food suppliers. With a mixture of shops including cultural food stores, hair dressers, antique dealers, motor factors and 2nd hand stores, this mix of independent shops, has given Albert Road a bohemian reputation (ref http://www.welcometoportsmouth.co.uk/albert%20road%20shopping.html accessed 09/06/11). I am looking at four inequalities; cyclists and other road users, parking, the decline of local grocery stores and how the users of Albert Road differ night and day. As on City Road the amount and types of traffic on Albert Road compete heavily. During the day many buses, taxis, cars and delivery vans go about their daily business using road space. Cyclists don’t get a fair use of the road, they cannot use footpaths and there is virtually no cycle paths along Albert Road. Cyclists also contend with parked vehicles limiting the amount of road space available, a very restricted area for two way traffic including large vehicles such as buses. The Police in Portsmouth have identified Albert Road as an area with a higher risk of cyclists having accidents and have looked to improve this situation (ref http://www.hampshire.police.uk/Internet/news/releases/Portsmouth+Police+educate+bike+users+about+staying+safe.htm accessed 09/06/11). This inequality doesn’t prevent cyclists using Albert Road but they are more cautious than other road users as they have the smallest vehicles with the least protection and the greatest risk of being hurt. This was not a direct inequality that was mentioned regarding City Road but for Albert Road it is a relevant issue. Another inequality is the loss of traditional grocery shops such as butchers, bakers, newsagents and greengrocers that declined since the introduction of supermarkets and the addition of Tesco to Albert Road. As in City Road (ref DVD Making Social Lives Scene 3) where we heard the newsagent describing what happened to his business and those of his competitors and neighbours when a new supermarket opened, most of these traditional grocery shops couldn’t compete with Tesco on price and convenience and have since closed. There are now very few food grocery retailers other than Tesco and specialist ethnic grocers. While this is an inequality it shows how Albert Road evolves and as one aspect is no longer or far less required another moves in to fulfil a need in the area. Society is constantly being ‘made and repaired’ (ref Blakeley et al, Learning Companion 1, 2009) as people are by nature fluid in their approach to where they settle and where they work, this changes their demands on each society or community as people relocate themselves and their families and the work they do. Parking is another inequality at various times for different reasons, the road, despite being full of shops does not offer much parking, with no car parks, all parking is on street in Albert Road itself or the adjoining roads. During the day this parking is not normally stretched beyond capacity other than around the schools when the children are either arriving or leaving in the mornings and afternoons. In the evening however, the on street parking is often exceeded with many people visiting bars, restaurants, music venues and the theatre on Albert Road. This results in competition for parking in much of the surrounding streets which leads to conflict between users of these establishments and local residents, this is particularly apparent at times when the theatre has a popular production such as pantomimes. During the day Albert Road sees a broad spectrum of users from all age ranges coming and going but in the evening and at night this changes to mostly younger adults and students visiting Albert Road for a night out and enjoying what is on offer. Visiting many Albert Road pubs in the evening, especially Friday and Saturday, shows very few people of an older generation visiting the area, showing an inequality created by the discomfort these people feel at this time of day and by the businesses open later in the day catering for a specific demographic. Albert Road has many inequalities and I have mentioned just four but they are no different to what many streets experience, as mentioned previously this road and the society living on it will evolve and I am sure that if I came to do this assignment again in 10 years I would see something different to what is there today. 736 words√ No final referencing' 75/100 Self Reflection It was interesting to walk along Albert Road with a different viewpoint, looking at all aspects including inanimate objects such as road markings and how society interacts. I found it difficult to do the referencing due to my own time pressures and to illustrate my grasp of the study material. 50 words