CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Infrastructure

Should we have a Leake Street (or 2) for Scotland?

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  1. Tulyar
    Member

    In the subterranean warren of the undercroft of Waterloo Station the closed-off cul-de sac of Leake Street is a supercharged version of Colinton Tunnel as a giant street art 'venue'

    One possible option is to solve several problems in a single project, in Glasgow providing a well lit and direct route across the 'dark' Kelvingrove Park and use the current liability of the Stobcross Railway Tunnel. This will also deliver a direct walking & cycling link from Kelvinbridge/Hillhead down to SECC & Finnieston Station, crossing under 2 busy roads, and with restaurants/bars at each end

    Could something similar work for the remains of Scotland Street Railway Tunnel? A gentler climb from Canonmills to Princes Street?

    Posted 2 years ago #

  2. chdot
    Admin

    “Could something similar work for the remains of Scotland Street Railway Tunnel? A gentler climb from Canonmills to Princes Street?“

    Basically no.

    It’s not significantly less steep than DublinStreet.

    It has tram lines above it in place you might want an exit near Princes St.

    It doesn’t actually go anywhere particularly useful for many people.

    At Waverley it arrives at track level without an obvious/convenient way to integrate it into the station - would need a lift.

    I think a lift shaft has been constructed in part of the tunnel in S St A St.

    What should have happened is a pedestrian link between Waverley and the new (then) bus station.

    Posted 2 years ago #

  3. Arellcat
    Moderator

    The Stobcross tunnel is certainly there for the taking and would certainly avoid having to cross Argyle and Sauchiehall St, and be a quick way to get to Kelvinbridge - but in the dark I think many people would avoid it for the same reasons as they'd avoid the Innocent tunnel, and make do on the roads.

    And if they went to the trouble of reopening Stobcross tunnel, I wonder if they'd be as well to re-open the tunnel to Botanic Gardens as well, which eliminates crossing GWR.

    Posted 2 years ago #

  4. ejstubbs
    Member

    It’s not significantly less steep than DublinStreet.

    By my rough calculations it's about 1:18 from the junction of Royal Crescent and Scotland Street to the crest of the climb at the SE corner of St Andrew Square, and about the same going straight up Dundas Street from its junction with Eyre Place. Wiki and RailScot have the tunnel's gradient as 1:27 but, as you point out, that's to the southern portal of the tunnel which is 11m below the level of Princes Street. I agree that that difference in levels at that location would seem to rule it out as cycle route, especially since Waverley Market now sits on top of said portal.

    The opening behind the grating on Platform 20 at Waverley Station is for a ventilation duct for the tunnel, which runs from the site of the tunnel portal and through what used to be the site of Canal Street station beneath Waverley Market. Basically, it's just a big pipe from there back to the S side of Princes Street, rather than a tunnel.

    This picture on the Disused Stations web site gives a reasonable idea of the layout of the area when Canal Street station was in operation:

    and this map shows how the Edinburgh, Leith and Newhaven Railway used to join what was then the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway just to the west of what was at the time called North Bridge station, before the Easter Road Diversion via Abbeyhill was built in the late 1860s:

    There's more detail about the current arrangement at the southern end of the tunnel on the Subterranean Britannica web site, and some photos of the interior of the tunnel apparently dating from 2014 on this blog, including a photo of the southern end (WARNING: NSFW)

    Posted 2 years ago #

  5. neddie
    Member

    Why should cyclists be shoved into dark, dank, wet tunnels anyway?

    Just prevent motor through-traffic on Dublin St, low-traffic neighbourhood the whole area and you're done. Cheap, quick and simple. And segregated lanes on Dundas St if you want to be a bit more spendy.

    If you really really want cyclists to use the tunnel, make it a short, free, automated metro system where you can put bikes on board - a bit like the Chocolate Factory horizontal elevator

    Posted 2 years ago #

  6. Tulyar
    Member

    Leake Street has lighting & minimal hidey hole places

    For the vision just transfer the ambience of Colinton Tunnel (on a curve as well) with a central smooth pavement and the cesses used for side swales, single sized stones which collect water & drain any 'leakage'

    The tunnel could be breached at the South Gate (Kelvingrove Street) and cut back 10-15m at Eldon Street, to eliminate the messy & steep dog-leg in the riverside path. The spoil from this work, can raise the level of the combined paths under Eldon Street (railway span), eliminating the regular deep puddle there and preventing a reprise of the flood that closed the Argyle Line over 40 years ago

    The whole tunnel can be brightly lit with the main ways in and out adjacent to 2 busy restaurants on Eldon Street and Argyle Street, using a micro hydro turbine, probably using the head from the weir under Kelvin Bridge, and out through the currently dry tail race(?) outlet in the wall by the car park

    Pinkston Burn buried since c.1852 also flows into the Kelvin somewhere around here when it isn't leaking into the Subway tunnels West of Cowcaddens (as it has been since 1896)

    Posted 2 years ago #

  7. Yodhrin
    Member

    The issue with tunnels is it doesn't matter how nice they are in theory, in practice past a certain hour they're going to be deserted. It doesn't really matter how many lights you put up, an isolated & enclosed space is never going to *feel* safe for a lot of people and that's just as important for usage as its *actual* level of safety(which will always be less than a proper main road route).

    They should be an absolute last resort, used only when there is literally no other way of routing cycle traffic safely.

    Posted 2 years ago #

  8. chdot
    Admin

    https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/heritage-and-retro/retro/9-eerie-edinburgh-tunnels-and-vaults-hidden-beneath-the-citys-streets-3894536

    Posted 2 years ago #

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