Bath - gone downhill?

[SecretPeston]

Today was the second time recently I've had to go into Bath city centre. Prior to this, my last visits were just before the pandemic started.

I couldn't help but notice on my visit today and recently that what I remember as a clean and pleasant place to visit and shop, has really gone downhill. There was litter all around the shopping streets, it was really crowded, and a lot of shops and cafes/restaurants had closed down. That said, a lot of the cafes/restaurants looked very busy and some were queuing out of the door.

The first few times I visited Bath in 2017-2018 I remember I loved it and enjoyed my time there.

Overall today and recently it looked quite scruffy, and sad, and I couldn't wait to leave. Quite a shame.

What has happened to Bath?

I would be interested to know as well.

Thanks @poetryandwine 👍🏻

Yes I noticed this when I last visited Bath and it was January. There was rubbish plonked on the streets in bags, not in bins and I said what about foxes, what if he get high winds and it whisks all the crap in the air.

Where I live we have bins and we have a tory council. Is Bath tory too? Shame on them for not thinking ahead especially with a busy tourist, student town like Bath.

The pubs are great there though

If you think leafy touristy Bath is bad go to Reading. I had to go for work and was accosted by several male homeless people on a short trip away from the station trying to get food before I taxied to my hotel.

It's awful. So sad. They all spun me a load of lies about women who were with them (but no where to be seen) who they just wanted to get a bed for the night for them.

I said no of course (one even asked me to come with him, presumably knowing I wouldn't).

Things were never this bad before the Tories ripped our country to shreds.

Just to let you know if she does move to Bristol - they've just implemented a clean air zone here too! Typical! But Bristol is fab regardless.

Whoever your local council is run by, the Conservative government have slashed the central support they give, albeit slashing more on deprived urban areas than more comfortable areas, as our evil PM has boasted about...

You're not allowed bins if you live in BANES. It has to be bags on the street.

Love the Queensberry, stayed there a few times.

I live in Bath and even pre covid it was already going downhill. There used to be loads of great independent shops now it’s all boring high street rubbish and even they are leaving. It’s not the city it should be and I do think the council are massively to blame. They should have been more like Frome and done things to keep the small businesses which have got to be better than empty units.

That said I do love living here, the surrounding countryside is beautiful, I just done go in to the centre as much. Especially when the hen and stag dos come out to play!!

Not true, each household has a wheelie bin or a gull proof bag (only if the property is unsuitable for a wheelie bin).

Bath council and MP are all Lib Dem.

It’s being going downhill ever since the Romans left 😂

😂😂😂

Rubbish (pun intended). I live in B&NES and everyone round here has wheelie bins and recycling boxes! Bags maybe in the city centre if there is no space for proper bins.

Private cars aren't affected by the clean air zone, so don't know how this happened. It's commercial vehicles - taxis, vans, lorries, etc.

So much misinformation on this thread.

BANES has had wheely bins and recycling bins for years now. My daughter is in central Bath and has all bins. I have bins on the outskirts too.

Is Bath tory too?

Flatcheese it's lib dem. No idea why the Tories keep getting a mention. They are responsible for many bad things, but ruining Bath isn't one of them.

I live there and although Lib Dem it was a Tory council till around 18 months ago and yes things went downhill under them- I actually think the Lib Dem's have done a much better job (and we've been overseas for 20 months, so I can see the difference) - the centre looks far cleaner again I feel. And we most definitely have bins and recycling boxes? Maybe the person mentioning them was talking about commercial rubbish??

It depends. I used to live in a flat off Lower Bristol Road (Georgian 2 bed houses divided into 2, BA2 postcode) and we had no bins.

This is from Wikipaedia.

Since B&NES was created, until 2015, no political party had been in overall control of the council. The Liberal Democrats quickly became the dominant party, but in the local elections on 3 May 2007 the Conservative Party won 31 seats and became the largest party, though they did not have a majority. In the 2011 local elections, the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives won 29 seats each with the Labour Party winning only five seats; the Liberal Democrats went on to form a minority administration. In 2015, the Conservative Party became the first party to secure a majority, with 37 seats. The Liberal Democrats subsequently took majority control of the council in 2019.

The Lib Dems have had more or equal power to the Conseratives in Bath overall.

A huge amount of local government funding comes from central government. The Conservatives have slashed what local government get, year after year. Local services are feeling the squeeze in councils run by all parties

I was there yesterday and it was horrible, just as OP describes. Crowded - literally shoulder to shoulder in some parts, smelly and dirty. Cafes and restaurants all packed with some queues out of the doors.

Reminded me a bit of Paris, which has also gone downhill.

All that's opening up now are more restaurants and cafes. Can't go clothes shopping as there are hardly any shops to go to. New Look left and was replaced with a Morrisons!
The loss of Debenhams, top shop, oasis and warehouse hasn't helped although I know this has happened everywhere. I used to love shopping but it's just boring now.

There’s no town or city unaffected by decline in recent years, they’ve all suffered