WITH all those empty spaces and shops in the town centre and all those regeneration schemes falling by the wayside, there is one proposal which has been mentioned before - a good old fashioned open air market.

One look at Salisbury will tell you why. Throngs of people every Tuesday and Saturday converging on the town, and traffic so gridlocked on a Saturday I have actually left the bus to walk the last mile or so to the market place.

Right in the centre of the city and surrounded by all the shops, it becomes vibrant and alive, so why haven’t we got one here in Swindon? Instead there is talk now of getting rid of the street traders, who actually do bring in a bit of colour - and convenience for that matter. Their stands look perfectly wholesome, one can sit outside to enjoy a very good cuppa and a donut, sit on a bench to lick an ice cream or buy a nice bunch of flowers. Take them away and you are faced with too many empty shops and no ‘spirit’ in what should be the heart of Swindon.

Now, put a huge open air market right into the centre - an ideal place for instance, the area of the old police station! It would certainly attract people to come into town, the shops are all in the immediate vicinity, there could be good and tempting advertising to pay a visit to the designer outlet village and the street traders could ply a profitable trade in such a setting.

MRS E SAINSBURY Cardigan Close Swindon