| Children in Corstorphine have turned urban designers to help create safer, more welcoming streets in their local neighbourhood. |
| As COP26 takes hold of Scotland, pupils from Carrick Knowe and Corstorphine Primary Schools have been sharing ideas to help people make healthy, low carbon journeys by walking, wheeling or cycling, as well as improving the environment, in their own corner of the country.
Hear the children speaking about their designs on YouTube. We’re engaging with the community as part of Corstorphine Connections, a project to introduce a Low Traffic Neighbourhood (LTN), and are asking residents to share their views on proposals to improve the look and feel of the area. The design proposals have been developed after receiving initial feedback from residents, including these designs for school streets by local children. Amongst their ideas are more trees, grass and flowers, spotty patterned roads and paw prints along the street to signpost safe routes. Councillor Lesley Macinnes, Transport and Environment Convener, said: “We owe it to future generations to create a city that is healthy, sustainable and safe to move around by foot, wheel or bike. So it’s fantastic that we’ve been able to involve our youngest citizens in the development of Edinburgh’s first LTN – they’ve got some great ideas. “We’ve seen from neighbourhoods around the world how LTNs can have a really positive impact on travel habits and quieter, more pleasant streets for residents and businesses, so I really look forward to delivering these benefits in Edinburgh.” People are being invited to have their say on placemaking ideas for Corstorphine, such as hanging baskets and ‘pencil bollards’ to protect children outside the school on Corstorphine High Street and new seating and colourful road surfaces to prioritise pedestrians on Saughton Road North. Two options for a ‘pocket park’ on Featherhall Avenue have also been put forward for feedback. Plans to start the Experimental Traffic Regulation Order (ETRO) process to introduce an LTN on a trial basis in Corstorphine were approved by Transport and Environment Committee in August, following engagement with the community on key issues and, subsequently, concept designs. The LTN aims to create a safer environment, providing more opportunities for residents to walk, wheel, cycle and spend time in by reducing vehicle volume and speed. In Corstorphine, residents have previously told us about concerns around the level and speed of traffic there, which is backed up by our own monitoring. By implementing an LTN we hope to create a calmer, more relaxed environment for travel by foot, wheel or bike. We’re planning to introduce the LTN on a trial basis, using an ETRO, in early spring 2022. LTNs form part of the City Mobility Plan, our ten-year transport strategy envisioning a better-connected, safer and more inclusive net zero carbon transport system. We’re also working towards the introduction of an LTN in Leith next summer. Find out more about Corstorphine Connections online and share your views on placemaking designs on the Council’s consultation hub before 14 November. |
2021-11-11