Bletchleyite
Veteran Member
Regarding the subways in Chester city centre, closing the The Bars and Fountains Roundabout subways won't happen. They're the only way for pedestrians to traverse what are two busy junctions in a timely and safe manner because neither have any pedestrian crossings. It'd be easy to counter argue "just put pedestrian crossings in then", but that'd be an answer to a question which hasn't been asked. Those subways need tidying up, but I'm firmly of the view closing them would be a poor move.
I don't know, I really don't like using it and if they just put in two crossings I'd use those instead (there is a way to do it at street level already but it's a considerably longer walk unless you just jump the barriers and walk across anyway). The problem with it is that it's too small - only about 7-8 foot square if that - and so if anyone scares you down there you can't get away. It also has a problem with homeless people living in it, some of whom are quite aggressive (and if they'll be aggressive to 6'4" brick outside lavatory me I hate to think what they might do to a slight woman or a child). I don't have an issue with the wide, short, open style of underpasses used in Milton Keynes where getting away from an assailant would be fairly easy, but it would cost an absolute fortune to change that into one similar.
The only way I could see of making it not unpleasant would be to post a police officer or private security there 24/7 to eject any loiterers, which I suspect would rapidly cost a lot more than a couple of pelican crossings.
I suspect while people may not be shouting for that there are people who won't use it at some times of the day or at all, and thus won't go to Chester by rail.
Of course you could add the crossings and leave it open and let people use which they prefer, but I suspect it'd overridingly be the crossings on the level.