The impacts of different events on business levels at QVM
are many and varied and it is easy to be led astray by questionable rationale. How
do we know if it is the weather, or that special sporting event, or something completely
different impacting on business levels at our market. Well, the latest ingredient
to get attention is road closures and this weekend there are many examples of
this insidious practice.
The Grand Prix is already known as a business killer in
Melbourne. Yes, it brings thousands of tourists to our fair city and it
showcases Melbourne to millions of sporting fans worldwide but it definitely
doesn’t do much for retail sales. Not only do fans seem to be focused on
things other than shopping, but they pretty much block access to the city from
the south because of their location at the Albert Park racetrack. Melbourne’s
radio traffic reports in the lead up to the big race include warnings to avoid
bringing your car through that southern
Then today we had The Run For Kids which involved the
closure of many main city access points including the Monash Freeway, the Domain
tunnel system, and the Westgate Freeway. Add in major construction work and
lane closures on the Tullamarine Freeway and you can see the problem. The
Herald-Sun described this as a weekend of traffic chaos. Who could blame Melburnians
for staying away from the city and our market in their droves.
Getting the right balance between holding events and letting
the city get on with the practice of doing business is very important. On this
occasion, our city planners and organisers have got it all horribly wrong. Events
like the Grand Prix and the Run For Kids are worthwhile but we need to find
ways of conducting them without disrupting other legitimate activities. It is
time the State Government did something about the impact of road closures on
city business and adopted a professional management approach to the issue.
