Bad move for town centre

Jun 26 2009

WITH the opening of the new Tesco superstore at West Shaw street, it seems to me that this is another nail in the coffin of the town centre.

I know this is a common problem for many towns but Kilmarnock’s situation is aggravated by the appalling town centre development of the 70s, which makes the town so unattractive to visitors.

With easy access and free parking available at Silverburn, Braehead and Irvine, why should people shop in Kilmarnock?

East Kilbride offers a great variety of shops, all under cover and parking is only 50p an hour. Parking in Kilmarnock is a mess.

You can park in the multi-storey for 30p for the first hour and 40p for the second or all day for £1 on the upper floors.

Elsewhere, off-street parking in the town appears to be 50p an hour. To attract more people to the town centre, why not make off-street parking free?

This then may encourage more businesses, and the town could really be rejuvenated.

Come on East Ayrshire, do something positive and revolutionary for a change. What you lose on parking fees you would surely make up by not having to pay for, and empty the ticket machines.

– Robin Wood, Kilmarnock.