page_title: Southampton City Centre
section_title: Transport
hierarchical_section_title: Southampton City Centre / Transport
caption_attribution_description: Southampton Central Station, viewed from the footbridge and looking West. A brand new Desiro train waits patiently at Platform 3.
context_page_description: Southampton City Centre is the commercial and organisational centre of the City of Southampton, and the transport hub of the city. Because Southampton is on the South Coast of England, the city centre is not at the geometric centre of the city, but at the southern extremity.
  The traditional heart of the city is the High Street, which runs from the Town Quay to the Bargate, which was once the northern gateway to the walled city. As the city grew, this primary commercial area spread to the north of the Bargate, into Above Bar Street. Subsequent reclamation of land from Southampton Water to the west of the High Street meant further expansion in that direction, forming an area now known as West Quay and dominated by the modern Westquay shopping centre. When it opened, Westquay was the largest city-centre shopping centre in Europe, with around 100 shops.
context_section_description: Southampton Central railway station is located in the north west of the city centre area, with the old Southern Terminus in the south east.  There is also a new coach station on the West Quay retail park, a short walk from the railway station. Ferry services operate along Southampton Water to Hythe and Cowes.
  There are two main termini for bus services. As the biggest operator, First Hampshire & Dorset uses stops around Pound Tree Road, and occupies a lot of space there. This leaves the other terminal of Westquay available for other operators. Unilink passes Westquay in both directions (except the U2 which terminates at the Civic Centre), and Wilts & Dorset drop passengers off there, terminating at a series of bus stands along the road. Once back in service, buses turn round and pick up passengers at Westquay again. Certain Bluestar services also do this, while others stop at Bargate and some loop round Westquay, stopping between Bargate and Pound tree Road. Brijan Tours services also stop at Bargate.
caption: Platforms at Southampton Central station
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