Cumbernauld is a new town in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, created in 1956 as a population overflow for Glasgow. Its population was 49,664 at the time of the 2001 census. The name comes from the Scots Gaelic comar nan allt, meaning the meeting of the waters.

History

Its history stretches back to Roman times, with a settlement near the Antonine Wall. A rural population grew in the area where Cumbernauld's housing estates now stand, with the centrepoints being Cumbernauld House (once Cumbernauld Castle) and Cumbernauld Village nearby. A mining and quarrying industry flourished after the construction of the Forth and Clyde Canal, notably at Auchinstarry Quarry which is now a popular location for climbing and abseiling. After the creation of the new town, diverse industries such as high-tech, electronics, and chemical and food processing are now large employers, along with the Inland Revenue.

During its construction beginning 1963, under the designer's eye of Geoffrey Copcutt, Cumbernauld's town centre's daring megastructure architecture was highly praised. It is essentially contained within one structure, segmented into "phases", the first of which was completed in 1967, the latest of which began construction in May 2003 for completion around September 2004. Designed to be commerce centre, entertainment and business venue and luxury accommodation site, it was widely accepted as the UK's first shopping mall and was the world's first multi-level covered town centre. But the town never developed to its planned size, and the town centre has never had the life envisaged by town planners. Further expansion has been primarily to provide further space for shops. The residential structure of Cumbernauld is noteworthy in that there were no pedestrian crossings, i.e. zebra or pelican crossings, or traffic lights until a set of traffic / pelican lights were erected beside the new Tesco Extra, opened January 2004—pedestrians traverse roads by bridge or underpass.

Now widely perceived as a failure, Cumbernauld was named "most dismal place in Scotland" in business magazine Unlimited's Carbuncle Awards in 2001, and a book entitled "Crap Towns" published by the Idler magazine decided it was the second worst town in the United Kingdom in a 2003 book (after Kingston-upon-Hull), however the town centre was listed in a list of the top twenty 20th Century Modern Heritage Sites by the UK committee of the International Council on Monuments and Sites. However, a substantial portion of the Town Centre has been bulldozed to make way for a new retail and leisure complex. The town, or more specifically the suburb Abronhill, was the location for the film Gregory's Girl and its sequel, Gregory's Two Girls.

Cumbernauld is twinned with the town of Bron, France, and has its own airfield, ICAO code EGPF. The local football teams are Clyde, based at Broadwood Stadium and Cumbernauld United, based at Guy's Meadow. The local rugby team is Cumbernauld RFC. Nearby motorway links include the M8, M73, M74, M80 and M9. Ongoing construction work to provide additional housing and retail opportunities are located in the north-east of the town, with major upgrading of the A80 dual carriageway to improve transportation links within the town. A local campaign was recently initiated to protest at the proposed extension of the M80 within the town limits.

External links

BBC Scotland on Film (http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/history/scotlandonfilm/) RealMedia clips:
The Birth of Cumbernauld - narrowband (http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/history/scotlandonfilm/media/video/newlife/new_towns/birth_of_cumbernauld_vs.ram) | broadband (http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/history/scotlandonfilm/media/video/newlife/new_towns/birth_of_cumbernauld_v.ram)
Cumbernauld's New Life - narrowband (http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/history/scotlandonfilm/media/video/newlife/new_towns/cumbernaulds_new_life_vs.ram) | broadband (http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/history/scotlandonfilm/media/video/newlife/new_towns/cumbernaulds_new_life_v.ram)
Pedestrian Planning - narrowband (http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/history/scotlandonfilm/media/video/newlife/new_towns/pedestrian_engineering_vs.ram) | broadband (http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/history/scotlandonfilm/media/video/newlife/new_towns/pedestrian_engineering_v.ram)
Town Planning - Cumbernauld - narrowband (http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/history/scotlandonfilm/media/video/newlife/new_towns/town_planning_cumbernauld_vs.ram) | broadband (http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/history/scotlandonfilm/media/video/newlife/new_towns/town_planning_cumbernauld_v.ram)
Why New Towns? - narrowband (http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/history/scotlandonfilm/media/video/newlife/new_towns/why_new_towns_vs.ram) | broadband (http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/history/scotlandonfilm/media/video/newlife/new_towns/why_new_towns_v.ram)

"Cumbernauld, Town for Tomorrow" © 1970 Scottish Screen Archive.
Hosted by the BBC, also available from BFI screenonline (http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/681646/)