Public realm enhancements
The re-instatement of one of Bristols most famous squares is an example of Legible Cities attention to detail. Queen Square was completed in 1710. In 1937 the construction of a main road dissecting the square caused public outrage. In recent years, the road has been diverted and clutter has been removed – returning it to past glory.


By 1990, over 20,000 vehicles were crossing the square and blighting the environment. It wasn’t until the Heritage Lottery Fund established the Urban Parks programme in 1996 that these isssues could be looked at.

An award in 1998 of £3.4m allowed redevelopment including the repair of the central statue, the replacement of fencing and the re-instatement of stone setts to the perimeter road.

The removal of traffic, un-wanted signs, and re-juvination of the park features has made significant improvements to the quality of life in and around the square.

Forecourt parking was an obstruction to pedestrians and visually intrusive. Poorly accessible to pedetrians and noisy due to bus traffic the pavements and walkways were in a poor condition.