city road's this stretch of dodgy tarmac from death junction to the infirmary (now closed). it's generally maligned, slagged off, deemed common or rough, a disgrace to the name
'roath', a loud obnoxious sick-splashed turf of nuisance to residents, a fousty artery leading out of the city, for some: not fast enough. while our city centre makes desperate attempts to be perceived as european, city road is, not only in its multicultural nature but also in its opening hours. city road is capable of operating day & night, much like the european cities held up as examples of healthy street life. while the cardiff featured in glossy brochures attempts to give the impression of the civilised 24hr city culture of mainland europe, city road achieves actuality over appearance yet gets a bollocking for it. there's a moral question here: some people think if we stay up late & wake up late we're lazy or up to something & 24hr opening will only encourage this, but what about the night workers, the night socializers, the unemployed? afterall, unless you absolutely have to, why bother to wake at 7 in the morning? society is changing. we are redifining our timetables to suit ourselves & our activities & services available should mirror this. quality of life is not about impressing others with the appearance of our city, it's about providing residents with somewhere to buy milk, fresh bread, bogroll, petrol, a game of pool; amusement, a social life, employment, a stroll to the shops or anything else we fancy whether day or night. city road may not be the prettiest street in the world but it has its history, culture & dynamics. city road is organically cosmopolitan & should be given every opportunity to thrive.
a photo-poetry montage supported by the arts council of wales & jessops. begun in 1993 while lloyd lived in glenroy street, it's taken 7 years for the project to develop this far. is is finished? well it's fractal; there's a million & one possible directions & media in which to continue, & city road certainly continues to serve as subject matter in lloyd's other written works. whatever happens next, be sure the mapping of city road & the cathays-roath-adamsdown axis it represents will continue as long as the east-central areas of the city remain so rich in life detail yet so undervalued & understated.
although 'sense of city road' has no direct ties with the site,
there are sections which link directly to the excellent City Road Project , as I recognise
the importance of the work afforded by the schools, children & teachers involved
which has been focusing on City Road & its immediate vicinity
