CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Infrastructure

Footbridge over south sub?

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  1. SRD
    Moderator

    15/00193/FUL - care home/flats on Balcarres st.

    This proposal is highlighted on spokes planning page. it proposes to build flats plus care home on land currently occupied by council recycling depot.

    When the Royal Ed redevelopment project came up, there was talk of a footbridge across the south sub at that point to allow pedestrian - and possible cycle - access to the grounds. In fact, the planning committee made the NHS looking into this option a condition of their Phase 2 application.Could be handy for staff and residents. At present south edin js really cut off by the south sub.

    Posted 9 years ago #

  2. Chug
    Member

    A new bridge could be neatly tied up with the path up through Morningside Park - which is a handy bypass for the hill at Craighouse (which although it has a cycle lane, is still a 5mph-cyclist vs 35 mph too-close cars). It then leads into the relatively quiet grid of streets where are quite easy to navigate.

    Currently, a few cyclists and the council bin-emptying truck use the path, which is wide enough to be considered shared.

    Posted 9 years ago #

  3. chdot
    Admin

    "

    A planning application for a less green area was also discussed - to build a care home on the old Council depot in Balcarres Street. While we have no problems with the care home
    itself, we had considered objecting because the plan makes no provision for access to the proposed link to the Royal Edinburgh Hospital via a bridge across the railway. However we have recently learned that many residents in that area are opposed to having such a link. Therefore after some discussion, we decided to support the application in full and not to press for access to the REH.

    "

    Morningside Community Council minutes

    Posted 9 years ago #

  4. SRD
    Moderator

    Well that's depressing. Doubtless not people who actually ever walk anywhere in the neighbourhood.

    Posted 9 years ago #

  5. Dave
    Member

    Implicitly they seem to claim that more than half of local residents oppose it. Can that really be true?

    I hate the NIMBYism of community councils. I thought about running for ours just to upset the apple cart by not objecting to everything they were asked about.

    (Ironic that in this case I'm moaning about them not objecting to something!)

    Never mind, we can have full faith in the planning process to deliver this bridge, no doubt.

    Posted 9 years ago #

  6. SRD
    Moderator

    I managed to talk ours into not objecting to an expansion of our local mosque (pointed out it was a lot quieter than the pub opposite) and into not objecting to a bratwurst seller on colinton rd (pushed local business v. tesco)

    Posted 9 years ago #

  7. cb
    Member

    A bridge over the railway there would be amazing, giving an alternative route of of Plewlands that isn't Myreside Road or Morningside Road. Perhaps a good use for the Leith St bridge?

    I wonder if the objections stem from a fear/distrust of the residents on the north side of the tracks?

    Posted 9 years ago #

  8. SRD
    Moderator

    "I wonder if the objections stem from a fear/distrust of the residents on the north side of the tracks?"

    I'm sure that would be denied, but it seems rather likely.

    Posted 9 years ago #

  9. Fountainbridge
    Member

    Never considered it as an escape route from the hospital. Wasn't there an escapee a few years ago that requiring multiple armed response units?

    Edit to add this was only last year
    http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home-news/man-detained-after-dramatic-police-operation-following-incident-at-edinburgh-hospital.1405026255

    Posted 9 years ago #

  10. gembo
    Member

    It has taken me this long to click on to what the objection would be about. How narrow minded. Anyone intent on leaving the hospital would not be encouraged to do so by this route. You can walk on to the main road without any difficulties. There isn't a fence or a gate. There is a locked ward of course but tricky to get out of it. Patients are often in the community, sometimes hard to tell them apart from other morningside residents.

    Posted 9 years ago #

  11. I were right about that saddle
    Member

    Perhaps this also explains the shocking cycle path from RIE to Craigmillar. We wouldn't want cancerous and physically crippled people being encouraged to escape from that hospital into the community either.

    Posted 9 years ago #

  12. chdot
    Admin

    "Perhaps this also explains the shocking cycle path from RIE to Craigmillar."

    Do you mean the steps?

    There was supposed to be a sensible FLAT path to Greendykes. There is even a gate in the fence.

    Would have been useful for staff or patients coming from the east, but the hospital seems to have been more concerned about a path encouraging 'undesirables'.

    Path never built, gate never opened.

    (I think 'land ownership' was part of the problem too.)

    Posted 9 years ago #

  13. Morningsider
    Member

    The Morningside community has happily co-existed with the Royal Edinburgh and Craighouse (when it was open as a psychiatric unit) for many years.

    I have been told that one of the reasons the Royal Edinburgh wasn't moved out to Craigmillar was fears that the locals would be far less accommodating of the patients (that's the polite version) than in Morningside.

    I'm sure there may be a small minority of Morningisde residents who don't like the location of the Royal Ed, but I have never heard anyone mention it.

    Posted 9 years ago #

  14. Fountainbridge
    Member

    You can walk on to the main road without any difficulties.

    There isn't actually that many routes in to and out of the hospital. Watsons school to the north, South suburb rail to the south and Myreside Road to the west all have 10 foot high walls. Never explored the hospital but it looks like only 2 road connections.

    Posted 9 years ago #

  15. SRD
    Moderator

    Sure, but the main road connections are not controlled - easy access in and out. The plan for post- redevelopment is for there to be easier access via Myreside road too.

    Posted 9 years ago #

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