Glasgow is Scotland’s biggest city, with a growing population of over 630,000 people, the heart of the country’s biggest economic Region and home to three leading universities. The city is home to many of Scotland’s leading cultural and sporting organisations and venues, and the city centre has retained its position as the biggest retail destination in the UK outside of London’s West End.
Driven by significant regeneration and innovation, Glasgow continues to grow its financial, digital and creative sectors – including the new Barclays campus on the banks of the Clyde.
In 2024, Glasgow was placed in the Top 100 Best Global Cities – the highest ranked UK city outside of London, in 2025 it was awarded the 28th best city in Europe in the Europe’s Best Cities ranking report, and in 2019 it was named the UK’s top cultural and creative city.
The Glasgow City Region City Deal has played a key role in the ongoing regeneration of the city, with a number of high-profile projects bringing economic, environmental and social benefits – including the delivery of the iconic Govan to Partick bridge, the reconnection of Sighthill to the city centre via the Sighthill Bridge over the M8, more than 110 hectares of land unlocked in the north of Glasgow through the pioneering Smart Canal project, and transformation of public realm across the city through the Avenues programme.
City Deal Projects
Canal and North Gateway
The Canal and North Gateway project seeks to regenerate an underutilised, neglected and disconnected area on the edge of the city centre – to a vibrant new city neighbourhood, with new sustainable residential communities at Sighthill and Cowlairs, and a reinforced cultural community at Spiers Locks complemented by a mixed-use commercial core at Port Dundas, around the canal.
This project includes several different interventions, varying from site remediation and development, construction of new bridges, pedestrian and cycling infrastructures, street lighting, junction upgrading and drainage infrastructure.
- Sighthill Remediation Contract 1
- Sighthill Contract 2
- Cowlairs Bridge and Port Du ndas 100 Acre Hill
- North Glasgow Integrated Water Management System (NGIWMS)
- North Canal Bank Street and Spiers Locks Landscape Link
- Spiers Lock Garscube Toll and Links
- Sighthill M8 Pedestrian Bridge
- Port Dundas: Dobbies Loan
- Port Dundas: Pinkston Access and Remediation
Collegelands Calton Barras
The Collegelands Calton Barras Programme focuses on improving accessibility and connections from Collegelands to the city centre and beyond; remediating sights that have been derelict or vacant, to attract development to the area; and building on existing regeneration activities to improve the quality of place.
- Calton Barras Action Plan: Barras Public Realm Phase 1
- Meat Market Site Remediation
- Calton Barras Action Plan: Junction Improvements
- Meat Market Roads and Infrastructure
- Meat Market Public Realm and Listed Structures
- High Street: Public Realm and Connectivity
The Avenues (City Centre Enabling Infrastructure Integrated Public Realm)
The Avenues programme is a quality place-making project that will transform key streets and adjacent areas (or ‘Avenues’) in Glasgow city centre through the introduction of an improved external environment which will: rebalance traffic modes, introduce green and SMART infrastructure, and place people firmly at the heart of the project vision.
The biggest project of its kind in the UK, the project will deliver over 11Ha of new public realm, over 7Ha of enhanced public realm, over 5km of new and enhanced cycle routes, and over 9km of new and enhanced walkways.
- Sauchiehall Street Avenue Phase 1
- Intelligent Street Lighting
- Holland Street / Pitt Street
- Sauchiehall Street Precinct & Cambridge Street
- Argyle Street West (M8 Kingston Bridge to Union Street)
- Kyle Street / North Hanover Street
- George Square & Surrounding Avenues
- Stockwell Street
- Argyle Street East
- Clyde Street
- Broomielaw
- George Street Phase 2
Metropolitan Glasgow Strategic Drainage Partnership
The Metropolitan Glasgow Strategic Drainage Partnership (MGSDP) project is a proactive partnership which aims to deliver a programme of schemes to ‘sustainably drain Glasgow’ – targeting areas across the city where rainfall adversely impacts communities. MGSDP projects are aiming to increase sustainable economic growth by removing drainage constraints to regeneration. They create drainage capacity and reduce flood risk, which is allowing new areas of development and regeneration to be brought forward.
- Camlachie Burn
- Cardowan Surface Water Management Plan (SWMP)
- Hillington / Cardonald SWMP – Moss Heights / Halfway Community Park
- South East Glasgow SWMP
- Garrowhill / Baillieston SWMP
- Drumchapel SWMP
- Hillington / Cardonald SWMP – Queensland Gardens
- Hillington / Cardonald SWMP – Penilee
- Eastern Springburn SWMP
- High Knightswood / Netherton SWMP
- Cockenzie Street SWMP
Clyde Waterfront and West End Innovation Quarter
The key objectives of the programme are to unlock the development potential of vacant and derelict sites, such as the Barclays campus at Tradeston; to stimulate growth in the Life Sciences and Higher Education sectors; and to spread the benefits of City Deal investment to tackle multiple deprivation, particularly in Govan.
- Central Govan Action Plan (CGAP): Govan Public Realm
- CGAP: Govan Old Parish Church – Lower Ground Floor
- Improving Connectivity between Glasgow University and the QEUH
- Access and Integrity of the Waterfront – Tradeston Bridge Refurbishment
- CGAP: Water Row Grant Award
- Govan – Partick Bridge
- Byres Road Public Realm Phase 1
- Byres Road Public Realm Phase 2