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By kevlahan (registered) | Posted October 24, 2007 at 09:40:24
I had also visited Bordeaux several times before the new streetcars went in.
The city was dirty, run down and looked chaotic with an expressway along the river butting right up against a grimy 18th century terrace which was mostly boarded up. In fact, a friend who moved there said that Bordeaux was known as the 'toilet of the southwest'!
Now the expressway has half the lanes, the river has been opened with a walkway and cafes, and the 18th century terrace has been cleaned and is full of shops and restaurants. The riverside streetcar line was the direct catalyst for all these changes.
The situation is quite similar to Main St in downtown Hamilton: no one wanted to shop on a street next to an expressway! Another interesting parallel is that one streetcar line connects the university campus to the downtown: much as McMaster could easily be connected to downtown Hamilton. This would bring 22 000 more potential residents and shoppers closer to downtown.
All this is meant to point out that Bordeaux is an attractive city today largely because it turned its back on 40 years of car-centred ('la toute voiture') planning.
Nicholas
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