Some Geographical Background Information On Lincoln, High Street, and Tritton Road.
Floor space and Opening Dates of selected outlets on Tritton Road
Sq.m.
Currys 2,010 1997
PC World 2,010 1997
Halfords 1,300 1987
Staples 2,135 1999
Retail floor space in Lincoln city centre 1971 and 1988 (in square feet)
Durable goods Convenience goods Total
1971 350,000 41,900 391,900
1988 455,000 69,800 524,800
% change: + 30% + 67% + 34%
The city centre for these figures above is defined as the area either side of the High Street axis between the ‘Top of the High street’ in the north, and St Mary’s Street in the south.
Lincoln’s shopping catchments population (1988)
Convenience goods: 163,000
Durable goods: 287,000
Lincoln’s population is 83,242. There are 40,871 Males and 42,371 Females.
Lincoln is built around a very steep hill which has been previously used as fortification in the medieval era. The river Witham runs straight through the middle of Lincoln. Lincoln has clay lowlands, limestone ridges and a very large flood plain. Around the top of the steep hill, so aptly named, is Lincoln’s famous cathedral and castle.
Here is a Lincolns Census result for population for the year 2001.
Below is a portfolio of where Lincoln is and where things are located in Lincoln.
Lincoln is situated in the county around the east coast. This is the county of Lincolnshire. Lincoln is in the west of Lincolnshire.
I have chosen the following hypotheses:
- There is greater congestion in the CBD area of Lincoln than the Tritton Road area.
- Most people shop in the CBD area of Lincoln rather than the Tritton Road area.
- What are the differences in environmental quality in the CBD and Tritton Road?
Why Have I Chosen These Hypotheses?
- In Boston there has been a lot of controversy about traffic congestion, and John Adams Way always being blocked. I wanted to see if this is a country wide problem or just a local problem.
- The High Street area of Lincoln has started to become run down. I wanted to find out why this is. I wanted to see if the decline in shops around the high street area was to do with where people shopped and why.
- The CBD in Lincoln is now not as busy as the Tritton Road area and it has started to decline
Methodology
What is the difference between Traffic congestion in the CBD and Tritton Road? What do the pedestrians think of it?
For this hypothesis, I used the following primary data collection skills:
- Traffic count.
- Traffic survey of pedestrians.
I also used the following secondary data collection skill:
- Internet, traffic flow charts for Lincoln.
I used the traffic count as I needed to find out how any vehicles went past on the two roads in a certain amount of time so I could work out where traffic was the biggest problem.
I used the traffic survey so I could ask questions to residents and visitors and get their opinion on traffic in Lincoln.
I conducted my data collection at Tritton Road and Hungate on Tuesday the 18th of April for 10 minutes each between 11.00 and 11.30. I decided on these locations as Tritton road is a main way in and out of Lincoln and is a main problem for traffic. I chose Hungate as it runs right through the central pedestrianised area of the CBD.
I chose this day of the week as it was midweek and not a weekend when results could be affected, I chose this time of day as it wasn’t going to be affected by rush points in the day. To avoid bias in my results I stayed at each location for the same amount of time and counted every vehicle.
This data collection provided me with facts and opinions.
I obtained my secondary data from the internet. This data will help me to spot patterns or anomalies in my results and will help me to compare.
Where do people tend to shop in Lincoln and why do they shop in that specific location?
For this hypothesis, I used the following primary data collection skill:
- Shopping survey of pedestrians.
I also used the following secondary data collection skill:
- Internet, shop sales records.
I used the shopping survey so I could ask questions to residents and visitors and get their opinion on shopping and where to shop in Lincoln.
I conducted my data collection outside PC World and outside the Watergate centre on Tuesday the 18th of April for 30 minutes each between 13.00 and 14.00. I decided on these locations as Tritton road is a main area for retail and industrial shopping Lincoln and is a main attraction. I chose outside the Watergate as it runs right through the central pedestrianised area of the CBD and is on the main shopping street in Lincoln.
I chose this day of the week as it was midweek and not a weekend when results could be affected by lots of people coming into Lincoln to shop, I chose this time of day as it wasn’t going to be affected by rush points in the day. To avoid bias in my results I stayed at each location for the same amount of time and spoke to people in no particular gender or class.
This data collection provided me opinions.
I obtained my secondary data from the internet. This data will help me to spot patterns or anomalies in my results and will help me to compare with the results of my survey and with what people have told me to the facts and figures.
What are the differences in environmental quality in the CBD and Tritton Road?
For this hypothesis, I used the following primary data collection skill:
I also used the following secondary data collection skill:
- Photos of the areas on the internet.
I used the environmental survey so I could look at the areas closely and work out what the environmental quality was like in the two areas.
I conducted my data collection at Tritton Road roundabout and outside the Watergate centre on Tuesday the 18th of April for around 10 minutes each between 14.05 and 14.30. I decided on these locations as Tritton road is a main area for retail and industrial shopping Lincoln and is a fairly new attraction therefore should be high in environmental quality, however the main road does run right through the centre of it. I chose outside the Watergate as it runs right through the central pedestrianised area of the CBD and is on the main shopping street in Lincoln. Many people who come to Lincoln will go here and so the quality should be maintained.
I chose this day of the week as it was midweek and not a weekend when results could be affected by lots of people coming into Lincoln to shop, I chose this time of day as it wasn’t going to be affected by rush points in the day and traffic. To avoid bias in my results I stayed at each location for the same amount of time and tried to analyze the environmental quality on the same scale. I did not look at one and then use that to compare the environmental quality to the other.
This data collection provided me with my opinions.
I obtained my secondary data from the internet. This data will help me to compare other times and areas with the results of my survey and with what I saw.
