Traffic caused by shopping
Traffic caused by shopping
Author
Discussion

NH1

Original Poster:

1,333 posts

159 months

Monday 30th December 2013
quotequote all
I had to go out this afternoon, I didn't want to but it was unavoidable., the route took me near the Trafford Centre and along the M60. Going was fine but coming back, OMFG I have never seen traffic as bad on the surrounding motorway and road structure. Every single way was blocked, it was gridlocked for about 3 or 4 miles around it. I ended up going across the moss to get home and it was like driving across the surface of mars, 2 hrs it took, I should have gone that way in the first place.

But my point is why in the name of everything holy would you sit in a traffic jam that long just to go shopping, surely anyone with half a brain cell must realise that even if they get to it before it shuts there will be next to no chance of finding a space. What posses someone to sit in a stationary car for 3 hours out of choice, and thats without thinking about what it will be like once/if you get there.
Mind you if they had half a brain they would realise the sales are a big fat con anyway.

cheddar

4,637 posts

204 months

Monday 30th December 2013
quotequote all
What did you buy?

NH1

Original Poster:

1,333 posts

159 months

Monday 30th December 2013
quotequote all
cheddar said:
What did you buy?
Apart from the farm almost due to rising blood pressure, fk all, I had to take someone somewhere.

surveyor

18,695 posts

214 months

Monday 30th December 2013
quotequote all
I worked in a call centre that answered bluewaters calls when it first opened. First Sunday everyone tried to leave at the same time. Gridlock. We were still getting calls at 9pm asking what we were doing about it.

Some even asked why we were answering the phones and not out sorting traffic. Not withstanding why they were calling us if they thought we should not be there, we had to apologise and say we would if we could, but we were in Bristol...

It was mental in every sense.

Most mental was the girl who rang from Bayswater road and wanted us to stay on the line giving directions to Bluewater....

vikingaero

13,365 posts

199 months

Monday 30th December 2013
quotequote all
surveyor said:
I worked in a call centre that answered bluewaters calls when it first opened. First Sunday everyone tried to leave at the same time. Gridlock. We were still getting calls at 9pm asking what we were doing about it.

Some even asked why we were answering the phones and not out sorting traffic. Not withstanding why they were calling us if they thought we should not be there, we had to apologise and say we would if we could, but we were in Bristol...

It was mental in every sense.
Shopping Centres nearly always have cack routes in and out. Bluewater only really has one route in and out. 1.25 at a push if you count going towards Greenhithe.

Even Lakeside has only 2 primary entrances. It's all down to cost when they build the things.

[quote]Most mental was the girl who rang from Bayswater road and wanted us to stay on the line giving directions to Bluewater....
And did you?

surveyor

18,695 posts

214 months

Monday 30th December 2013
quotequote all
vikingaero said:
surveyor said:
I worked in a call centre that answered bluewaters calls when it first opened. First Sunday everyone tried to leave at the same time. Gridlock. We were still getting calls at 9pm asking what we were doing about it.

Some even asked why we were answering the phones and not out sorting traffic. Not withstanding why they were calling us if they thought we should not be there, we had to apologise and say we would if we could, but we were in Bristol...

It was mental in every sense.
Shopping Centres nearly always have cack routes in and out. Bluewater only really has one route in and out. 1.25 at a push if you count going towards Greenhithe.

Even Lakeside has only 2 primary entrances. It's all down to cost when they build the things.

[quote]Most mental was the girl who rang from Bayswater road and wanted us to stay on the line giving directions to Bluewater....
And did you?
No I did not. We did give her some directions and welcomed her to call back if she was unsure at any point.

*Al*

3,830 posts

252 months

Monday 30th December 2013
quotequote all
surveyor said:
vikingaero said:
surveyor said:
I worked in a call centre that answered bluewaters calls when it first opened. First Sunday everyone tried to leave at the same time. Gridlock. We were still getting calls at 9pm asking what we were doing about it.

Some even asked why we were answering the phones and not out sorting traffic. Not withstanding why they were calling us if they thought we should not be there, we had to apologise and say we would if we could, but we were in Bristol...

It was mental in every sense.
Shopping Centres nearly always have cack routes in and out. Bluewater only really has one route in and out. 1.25 at a push if you count going towards Greenhithe.

Even Lakeside has only 2 primary entrances. It's all down to cost when they build the things.

[quote]Most mental was the girl who rang from Bayswater road and wanted us to stay on the line giving directions to Bluewater....
And did you?
No I did not. We did give her some directions and welcomed her to call back if she was unsure at any point.
Was she fit? smile

anonymous-user

84 months

Monday 30th December 2013
quotequote all
Just rolled in home and this is the first thing a mate at my house said, The motorway around the TC has been fooooked for with people trying to get in.

I was pretty amazed near Christmas the other year when I went at how bad the on site traffic management was, Poor private sector car park clogging up public roads and delaying people who had no intention of visiting the shopping complex,

It doesn't help when they have to shut the chill factor complex and surrounding roads due to the wind unsettling their roof again http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greate...

http://www.itv.com/news/granada/update/2013-12-27/...

LadfromManc

94 posts

155 months

Monday 30th December 2013
quotequote all
I work in Trafford Park and unfortunately have to use the Trafford Centre exit to get to work. Over the festive period it's been fine but today was a nightmare. The chaos seemed to start around midday and snowballed from there. We had several customers come in saying it had taken them over an hour to get from around the Costco area to near Kelloggs.
I can only assume it was the less die hard 'sale' shoppers that all descended en masse, coupled with the bad weather that meant people wanted to be indoors that caused the mayhem.

MoelyCrio

2,502 posts

212 months

Monday 30th December 2013
quotequote all
Complain to Peel Holdings. They make all the money, yet everyone else (ie this thead) suffers the cost.

I'm not a socialist by any means, but it this case, private landowners are making mugs out of you all.

anonymous-user

84 months

Monday 30th December 2013
quotequote all
The answer is in the the question. 'The Trafford Centre'. Move.

SV8Predator

2,102 posts

195 months

Tuesday 31st December 2013
quotequote all
NH1 said:
I had to go out this afternoon, I didn't want to but it was unavoidable., the route took me near the Trafford Centre and along the M60. Going was fine but coming back, OMFG I have never seen traffic as bad on the surrounding motorway and road structure.
And you added to it. And all the others just like you.

Thank goodness they did not all respond to this thread!


Pints

18,451 posts

224 months

Tuesday 31st December 2013
quotequote all
MoelyCrio said:
Complain to Peel Holdings. They make all the money, yet everyone else (ie this thead) suffers the cost.

I'm not a socialist by any means, but it this case, private landowners are making mugs out of you all.
That's the beauty of capitalism; you can vote with your feet and shop elsewhere if you're not happy.

NH1

Original Poster:

1,333 posts

159 months

Tuesday 31st December 2013
quotequote all
SV8Predator said:
NH1 said:
I had to go out this afternoon, I didn't want to but it was unavoidable., the route took me near the Trafford Centre and along the M60. Going was fine but coming back, OMFG I have never seen traffic as bad on the surrounding motorway and road structure.
And you added to it. And all the others just like you.

Thank goodness they did not all respond to this thread!
Thats where you're wrong though, I didn't just sit in it, every time I came to a tail back I turned round and went the other way, ended up driving down this god forsaken road.

https://maps.google.co.uk/?ll=53.46067,-2.451003&a...

It doesn't look that bad from that shot, but believe me its a farm track with more potholes than road. It took ages to work out how the level crossing worked as well.

maniac886

1,310 posts

200 months

Tuesday 31st December 2013
quotequote all
MoelyCrio said:
Complain to Peel Holdings. They make all the money, yet everyone else (ie this thead) suffers the cost.

I'm not a socialist by any means, but it this case, private landowners are making mugs out of you all.
I think Peel Holdings sold the Trafford Centre in 2011?

RCBRG

603 posts

171 months

Tuesday 31st December 2013
quotequote all
the M5 was at a standstill for a good 2 or 3 miles, with people queueing to get off at Cribbs Causeway. I felt sure there must have been a big accident, i've never seen traffic like that for a shopping centre before

Johnston

254 posts

210 months

Tuesday 31st December 2013
quotequote all
As a previous poster says, the 'Sales' are all a massive con. I worked in retail for 15 years and the prices would often go up in the SALE because people just go mental and buy all sorts of crap thinking they are getting the bargain of a lifetime.

Wait till the second/third week in January when it all goes quiet and the shops become desperate for your money again and that is when they do genuinely do some good deals.

Anyway, the thought of sitting in a traffic jam purely to go shopping is about as pathetic a waste of my time as I can possibly imagine.

RammyMP

7,731 posts

183 months

Tuesday 31st December 2013
quotequote all
maniac886 said:
MoelyCrio said:
Complain to Peel Holdings. They make all the money, yet everyone else (ie this thead) suffers the cost.

I'm not a socialist by any means, but it this case, private landowners are making mugs out of you all.
I think Peel Holdings sold the Trafford Centre in 2011?
You are correct, Peel sold most of its stake to Intu, but they still hold a share, but only a minor one.

The road works around the Trafford Centre will start again on Monday so the traffic will get worse again! Access will allegedly be improved when the new lift bridge is built under Barton Bridge, but at the moment it can't be built as the Highways Agency won't let Peel built it (due to the unstable nature of Barton Bridge).

berlintaxi

8,535 posts

203 months

Tuesday 31st December 2013
quotequote all
NH1 said:
I had to go out this afternoon, I didn't want to but it was unavoidable., the route took me near the Trafford Centre and along the M60. Going was fine but coming back, OMFG I have never seen traffic as bad on the surrounding motorway and road structure. Every single way was blocked, it was gridlocked for about 3 or 4 miles around it. I ended up going across the moss to get home and it was like driving across the surface of mars, 2 hrs it took, I should have gone that way in the first place.
Funny, I went to the Lowry, Salford Quays, at a similar time and then travelled back to south Manchester, no signs of the congestion you claim.

The roundabouts on Barton Dock Road near Asda/Carcraft are chaos every weekend,and at rush-hour not just when the sales are on.

NH1

Original Poster:

1,333 posts

159 months

Tuesday 31st December 2013
quotequote all
berlintaxi said:
Funny, I went to the Lowry, Salford Quays, at a similar time and then travelled back to south Manchester, no signs of the congestion you claim.

The roundabouts on Barton Dock Road near Asda/Carcraft are chaos every weekend,and at rush-hour not just when the sales are on.
It was the Worsley area I went to, going was fine but coming back was twice as bad a morning rush hour. The motorway was solid from the Worsley junction of the M60 all the way to the TC. The main road to Eccles was backed up to Worsley, as were all the cut through roads.