Calls for more investment to help city centre night time sector in Glasgow
Figures from the city council suggest footfall is back to pre-pandemic levels at evenings and weekends but nightclub managers say it's not enough.
Night-time industry bosses across Glasgow are calling for more investment to encourage people to come back to the city centre more regularly.
Figures from the council suggest that footfall for weekends and evenings is 101% and 130% above pre-pandemic levels respectively.
However, Paul Banham who runs The Buff Club on Bath Lane is telling us too many people are choosing to stay in the West End or the Southside.
He told Clyde 1: "We used to have people in their mid 20s coming to us every weekend before covid struck, but they got out of the habit of coming during lockdown.
"The costs of running the business are still rising and there is only so much people are willing to pay for a drink, an entry-free or a taxi home and all of these things things can put customers off from wanting to come out.
"Glasgow city centre is a vibrant place, but the council needs to get around the table with the hospitality and retail sector to discuss how we can make it even better."
Clyde 1 spoke to clubbers on Sauchiehall Street earlier this week about their experience of visiting the area.
Some people claim that the cost of getting a taxi home after dark is forcing them to finish their night early and get the last train.
One person said: "I find it easy enough to get a taxi, but the hardest thing is actually being able to afford it especially when you are a student like me and it is coming to the end of the month."
Another added: "I was being quoted £60 to get home to Paisley from the Savoy last week.
"You need to take out a bank loan to get a taxi these days."
A spokesperson for Glasgow City Council said: "The work of the CCRP and the City Centre Task Force has helped to attract Scottish Government grant funding for a number of projects.
"These include six area action plans focusing on areas of high footfall and transport hubs at Sauchiehall Street, Argyle Street, Anderston Cross, Buchanan Bus Station, Heilanman’s Umbrella, and High Street.
"This grant funding has also enabled additional resources to remove graffiti, an enhanced city centre cleansing service, more Community Enforcement officer patrols, additional police presence at key times and dates.
"Over the course of 2023, work on the CCRP will increasingly turn attention to the longer-term strategic objectives and the development of the new City Centre Strategy (2024-30).
"This Strategy will simplify existing city centre work on transport, economic development, city living and sustainability, with the addition of the Property Repurposing Action Plan, key to addressing the issue of redundant property in the area."