3.3 The Public Realm

Access and Movement

The accessibility and circulation, or ease of movement, within an urban area is one of the underpinning factors of its success. Vehicular, pedestrian and cycle networks must be well integrated to maximise the safety and quality of all modes of transport thus encouraging users into the city centre. Sheffield is currently subject to a range of transport and public realm improvements which aim to create an ease of movement and efficient circulation within and to the city centre. These are considered in detail in the Faber Maunsell Transport Strategy.

Road Network

The post-war era in Sheffield saw the large-scale adaptation of the city centre to accommodate vehicular traffic as a priority form of transport. To deal with the increased use of the car a number of dual carriageways were introduced into the city centre such as Charter Row and Eyre Street/Arundel Gate. The development of these vehicular routes fragmented the urban fabric. The city centre quarters referred to within this document are largely a result of the severance caused by these roads.

At present the main routes in and out of the city centre are:

Secondary access routes have been identified as:

Despite this dominant road network, the city centre still suffers from poor access to its car parks and places of interest. This lack of accessibility is compounded by inadequate signage which undermines the legibility of the city for vehicle users. There is a need to provide clearer access routes in and out of the city in order to improve local permeability and reduce congestion.

A number of strategic proposals have been identified by the Transport Strategy to improve the vehicular accessibility to the city without reintroducing through traffic into the city centre. These projects include the completion of the Inner Relief Road and the introduction of access loops. These access loops will provide better vehicular access to the city centre without impinging on the key pedestrian areas.

Car Parking

Sheffield City Centre is proliferated by unsightly open parking lots. These create significant disruptions to the cohesion and continuity of the city’s urban form. From both urban design and economic perspectives, greater use could be made of these sites, for open space or pedestrian generating developments.

Multi-storey car parks within the city centre have no relationship with their urban context. Many are underused due to their inhospitable or perceived unsafe interiors, difficulty of access or expensive rates.

Public Transport

Sheffield could have an exemplary integrated public transport network, much of which is already in place.

In the 1990s the tram was reintroduced to the city, and the supertram line now provides an efficient and well utilised mode of transport between the city centre and surrounding residential districts.

The existing bus system operates in a figure 8 dispersed system which again is well utilised, although there is a need to improve the current service. At present there is no interchange on the east side of the city centre and many of the stops do not correlate with the main pedestrian generators. The bus service also suffers from poor passenger facilities. There is a need to provide bus shelters along key routes to encourage people to use public transport.

There are a range of public transport proposals relating to the public realm contained within the Transport Strategy and Connect Sheffield, including:

Pedestrian Movement

There is a lack of legibility and permeability in the city centre pedestrian environment. Postwar traffic infrastructure and ill-considered modern developments have severed many key pedestrian routes. This is compounded by an incoherent signage system which is confusing for the pedestrian, making it difficult to develop an understanding of the city.

The intrusive road network within the city centre gives a dominance to the car. Although projects have been completed to pedestrianise some areas, the often inferior quality of these spaces means that many are under utilised.

At present pedestrian movement is largely generated by:

There are also a number of secondary pedestrian routes which link into the different quarters of the city centre and to the residential suburbs on the periphery. These routes generally suffer from poor environmental quality.

In addition to the proposals contained within the Transport Strategy, Connect Sheffield (refer Part 2.2) aims to improve pedestrian permeability, legibility, connectivity and safety.

Cycleways

Cycling is an efficient, environmentally friendly, space-saving and inexpensive means of transport. Despite Sheffield’s hilly topography cycling has many advantages over the use of private cars and should be encouraged. The current cycle network suffers from poor design and lack of integration. There is a need for cycle lanes on the key user routes, such as those between the universities and the city centre. This will encourage people to cycle in the city centre instead of using private cars.

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