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Lift Bridge closed this morning, even the stairs across.
"Due to essential maintenance that has been identified on the lift bridge. We have to temporary (sic) close the bridge to carry out surveys and works as required."
Another notice says the deterioration has reached the extent it is not safe to operate, or even use the adjacent area.
Work to last up to 3 months.
On the bright side, I guess the poorly located cycle counter will finally see a bit more action.
Yikes! Thank you for the heads up. I will have to try to remember this on my return to the commute on Monday morning although the natural diversion may see me missing the counter on MMW again (although I seem to recall that the works there were due to resume again post-Festival in any case?).
Wandered by earlier on. The wording of the sign suggests that they have intentionally been letting it deteriorate for some time, which seems strange if that is the case... There is one small hole on MMW, but nearly three-quarters of the width of the path is fenced off including the whole cycle lane.
The canals got a lot of money and a lot more assets to look after around the turn of the millenium. My impression is that while the assets have hung around the cash hasn't, so it's basically managed decline across a lot of the network now. I'm sure a regular water-bourne canal user could rant for some time about maintenance and manning issues across the country.
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A spokesman for Transport Scotland, which provided an extra £1.6m in June to repair Twechar and Bonnybridge bridges, said: “There have ongoing discussions with Scottish Canals about their asset management plan to understand the scale of the financial challenges ahead.”
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Don’t know whether needing to involve TS is an advance or not.
Certainly not short of money...
As I passed Leamington Road this morning (heading for Viewforth and the new ramp beside Boroughmuir High), I glanced to the right. A brief glimpse gave the impression that the lift bridge appeared open to pedestrian traffic, which seems unlikely given the circumstances - maybe a trick of the light, but can anyone confirm its status?
There is no reason for the bridge to be shut to foot traffic. The bed of the bridge is self-locking into the canal lining structure, so even if the cable snapped, the bed would remain safely in the down position.
Agreed, it's a fail-safe design. And it also has the stairs and gantry for pedestrians even if the bed isn't safe.
Unless it's reached the point where bits of rusted metal could start falling on people, like happened with the Forth Rail Bridge due to neglect...
@jdanielp 'the new ramp beside Boroughmuir High' is there one? where?
@SRD just to the left where the parking spaces begin on Viewforth when descending towards Dundee Street. It's a bit tight, but is navigable on a typical bike if clear.
you mean beside the school? I'd not considered that as a public access. was hoping you meant a new ramp on the other side.
Yes, beside the school. It's probably too tight for the tandem but OK otherwise. My problem with it is that coming off the canal there isn't a ramp near it so the natural desire line is for the crossing, requiring a fair bit of scofflaw pavement cycling. (That is actually quite neglectful design as I assume this is *meant* to be the cycle access to the school.)
@jdanielp - to answer your question, the bridge remains closed, but this morning the fencing had been knocked down (or had at least found itself in a horizontal position through some other more surprising mechanism). I saw someone cross, but it was involving walking/wheeling across the flattened fence and clearly wasn't entirely easy. By the evening the fence was up again. I'm going to guess that a battle will now ensue... between whoever it is who is frustrated enough to take action and knock the fence down, and those who've decided that the fences should be replaced. Who's going to be the more determined?? Will a suitable compromise emerge??
Traffic lights at top of hump of bridge very peculiar.
How has the canal boat hiring industry been impacted upon?
I notice the guy who scalped his dog but kept his own huge beard has moved off his mooring at Harrison park but this may be coincidence
@SRD yes, you are probably right because there is the potential for it to be shut; however, whilst it remains open and quiet busy when I'm passing, I will continue to use it since it seems to be the best route for me given the awful quality cobbling on the official diversionary round the basin.
@rbrtwtmn interesting (and mildly relieving). Thanks for the info.
or had at least found itself in a horizontal position through some other more surprising mechanism
Excellent CCE content.
Access ramp at school is indeed designed to discourage cycle use. Pavement on Viewforth of course is wide enough to have painted cycle lane but little point. 50% of bike users use this anyway. Cars sit in line fuming about slow lights.
Every night around 5.30 huge convoys of cars come up here and occupy whole length of St Peter's Place.
Residents want the bridge closed as too many cars on the street. Some are concerned that so much through traffic blocks access and parking to MacNeil St. (ie Thorneil cul de sac). Some worried about air quality.
When the Viewforth bridge is closed then more cars go via Yeaman Place as @SRD will testify.
Anyone know why the diversion round the Akva end of the canal is 3/4 blocked off near the end of Canal Walk, sort of in front of the Fountain Court apartments? It's literally a metal cage that blocks most of the pedestrian route with nothing happening inside the cage. Almost seems like it's deliberately obstructive.
@dougal - been like that for months. Workers were finishing off the smooth paving and it re-appeared. Is (yet another) squeeze / conflict point.
In other news...
The Counter has now moored close to Akva.
Guy says bridge closure means they can't easily get water from barge services.
The fencing nearer the end of the canal is because the block paving (is that the right term) is slightly raised up . I think that it happened in the heat. My non-technical assumption is that something expanded that shouldn't have. My ill-informed guess would be that there'll be an argument going on somewhere deep in Scottish Canals, or some contractor's office, about whose job it is to fix it. Myself I was wondering whether taking one row of blocks out and applying a large rubber hammer to the raised blocks, chopping some stone off the removed blocks and re-inserting into the gap, would sort it. But then my bike's historically been held together with bits of wire and sticky tape...
So let me get this straight, the school actually has no official cycling access for anyone coming across the canal (i.e. literally anyone in its catchment, given that the nearest canal access from the south/east is at Harrison Park otherwise), given that the bike parking is on the plaza and the long way round is obviously ridiculous. Top marks.
Presumably kids from Buckstone and some parts of the South morningside catchment would come along the canal path ? but yes, access from view forth is poor.
if you look at the original consultation docs, you'll see a comment from me about that access being poor and the secure bike parking being poorly located.
It looked like the lift bridge might be open to pedestrian and bicycle traffic in an official way (the fencing seemed to have been moved to surround the structure closely while providing access across the middle) from my passing glance this morning... Confirmation of this would be appreciated.
Yep I cycled over last night. Was definitely open.
Oh, that's good news.
Traffic on Dundee Street was awful yesterday evening - the temporary lights at the Dundee Street/Viewforth junction were stuck on red in all directions. I ended up walking my bike along the pavement to get past. And why exactly have they ripped the nice new surface outside the school up AGAIN?
@claire3000006 excellent, thanks!
Cycled through this morning, can confirm it looks pretty official.
@piosad was that you almost cycling into me joining the towpath by Craiglockhart Primary this morning?
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