Supermarket threat
People from the south of Bath do not have to ‘cross the city centre for convenience shopping’. Sainsburys and the Co-Op Store in Oldfield Park provide supermarket type shopping and do not require residents to cross the city centre. At the same time more sustainable, inclusive shopping is provided by local shopping areas in Moorland Road, Odd Down, Southdown, Combe Down, Bear Flat and Twerton, all to the south of Bath.
A study by the New Economics Foundation found that £1 spent in a local shop selling local produce puts twice as much money back into the local economy as £1 spent in a supermarket.
Research also shows that when supermarkets open in 'edge of town' centre sites, they can act as a 'gate keeper' for the town centre as in order to get to the high street, shoppers must pass by the store with its ample parking. A study by DETR (1998) which included two case studies of edge-of-centre supermarkets concluded that “the principle effect of the new stores was to divert trade from the town centre to the edge-of-centre locations”. This is especially true if pedestrian links between the locations are poor or the distance too great. Parking restrictions in supermarket car parks (for example restricted to 2 hours parking) can also discourage shoppers from visiting other shops*.
The National Retail Planning Forum found that despite the job gains when a large supermarket opens, on average there are a net loss of 276 full time jobs within a 15km zone around the store, through the closure of smaller specialist food retailers and other small businesses that previously serviced the small shops**.
The Kate Barker Review of Land Use Planning, found in a survey of public attitudes towards a hypothetical supermarket development being proposed in their area, that 57% oppose 41% support
Out- or edge-of-town supermarkets not only divert shoppers from the high street but also lead to a dependence on car transport for shopping, restricting access to the elderly and those without cars. Three quarters of supermarket customers travel by car and when new stores open they generate more traffic. Roughly one in ten car journeys are to buy food***, and it is estimated that CO2 emissions generated by shopper miles equal those generated by food freight within the UK****.
With the expansion of Sainsburys and Waitrose and the possibility of a Lidl store at Newbridge, Bath will become a city of Supermarkets. There is no Food Store proposal for the north of Bath, the bus service is much worse than in the south, yet there is no suggestion that we know of to build a Supermarket there. People seem to be able to cope with city centre shopping and Morrisons just as in the south we have local shopping areas, city centre and Sainsburys.
Would it not be better to develop the local shopping area in Odd Down and/or provide new small local shops amongst any future new housing, where all can cycle or walk, so creating a sustainable community with an identity and local facilities, rather than making them drive to a Supermarket? Shopping can be provided in ways that are more sustainable than building Supermarkets.
The local newspaper is running a ‘support small shops’ campaign, the council purports to support small shops, yet here we will have another Supermarket which will further threaten the viability those same small shops.
Bath and its residents deserve better than this.
What the Council report says
B1.1 The Inspector recommends that the Hayesfield School playing field/St. Martin's Garden primary school site at Odd Down should be considered for allocation for mixed use development, including a food store. A new food store in southern Bath would relieve pressure on the Sainsbury's store while also reducing the need for the residents in a densely developed part of the city to travel into or across the city centre for convenience shopping.
B1.16 Whilst significant land is unlikely to be available to accommodate additional uses such as housing or other community facilities it is considered that the development requirements should refer to an element of residential uses enabling the potential for residential dwellings above the food store to be further investigated.
* DETR, 1998, The impact of large foodstores on market towns and district centres HMSO.
Porter and Rastrick 'The impact of out of centre food superstores on local retail employment' The National Retail Planning Forum January 1998
*** Based on figures from 'Travel to the Shops in GB, personal travel fact-sheet 6' Department of Transport, 2003
**** Food shop to home car journeys generate 20% - 50% of CO2 emissions from food transportation within the UK. Tara Garnett 'Wise Moves: exploring the relationship between food, transport and CO2' 2003 Transport 2000 Trust
