Around 100 protesters from Protection Not Paint congregated on Leith Walk yesterday to highlight the need for segregation between cyclists and motor vehicles.
This follows the recent installation and removal of the ‘armadillos’ on Leith Walk which at least afforded some degree of physical separation.
The council said at their meeting on 7 December 2017 that they would install a different style of physical protection. Protection Not Paint welcomed this but proceeded with their event yesterday as a form of celebration of that decision.
On 7 December Councillor Chas Booth raised the matter of the armadillos at the Transport and Environment Committee and sought clarification about the replacement of some other kind of physical measure.
Councillor Lesley Macinnes, Transport Convener, advised that she had met with the officials concerned as soon as the situation arose with this ‘soft segregation measure’ which marked out the cycle lanes. She said they were put in as an experiment but that there had been some problems including what she described as ‘near misses’.
Councillor Macinnes said that some pedestrians had tripped on them towards the roadway, some cars had hit the armadillos and one flew off on to the pavement. This she said was the reason for the speedy removal of the objects but the convener also confirmed the council will now look at the alternatives.
A council officer confirmed that the Leith Programme Oversight Group would discuss the alternatives and find the options available.
Protection Not Paint say that without any form of separation between the different forms of traffic, cycle lanes and pavements are often blocked by illegally parked cars.
They say that the event was fun and good natured and gave them the opportunity to talk to passers by most of whom supported them.
Photos courtesy of Andy Catlin
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