The English port city of Southampton has been a major hub for trade and travel for many years. The city has faced difficulties due to limited transport options, as evidenced with the departure of bus operator City Red, leaving the city’s bus industry shrouded in uncertainty, until Bluestar stepped in to replace all services.
Additionally, the number of bus journeys taken in Southampton has declined by a fifth over the last decade, with Department of Transport figures showing that 14.7 million bus journeys were taken within the year ending in March 2021.
The legacy of the City of Culture bid, lost out to Bradford last year, is said to bring more opportunities and jobs to the city. The Southampton Culture Trust has recruited a team of qualified professionals of who are focused on growing the economy.
Despite this, crime levels remain high in Southampton, with a record high number of sexual offences logged by the Hampshire Constabulary in the year leading up to September 2022. Further, Office for Health, Improvement and Disparities figures show that 23% of Southampton residents face food insecurity, further worsening the cost-of-living crisis.
As for entertainment, there are plenty of bars and clubs in the city, including Switch, Trilogy, Orange Rooms, Popworld, Café Parfait and Heartbreakers.
ChatGPT is an artificial intelligence programme that is used every day by users all over the world. After asking the text-based AI to list the worst things about Southampton, it listed the limited transport options, high-crime levels, and even food insecurity that the city is facing. It is no wonder that ChatGPT identified these issues, as they are indeed some of the worst things in Southampton.
