Edinburgh streets: Floating bus stops are top concern over Dundee Street / Fountainbridge revamp plans
Concerns about "floating" bus stops were the top issue raised at an online meeting to discuss proposed active travel improvements along Edinburgh's Dundee Street/Fountainbridge corridor.
Under the plans, which are currently out to consultation, all nine bus stops on the route would become floating, meaning a cycle lane runs between the bus stop and the pavement, so passengers must cross the lane to get on or off a bus.
Pedestrian groups and campaigners for people with visual impairment have previously criticised such designs, described in the Fountainbridge plans as "bus stop bypasses".
And during the online meeting, Annette Polllock, secretary of the Edinburgh Access Panel, which represents people with disabilities, said: "We have a big problem with these floating bus stops. Unless you have some way of warning the cyclists to stop and look and be careful, I could see accidents happening."
The Dundee Street/Fountainbridge Active Travel Project proposes a continuous cycleway in both directions between Ardmillan Place in the west to Ponton Street in the east, as well as a quiet route route on Ashley Drive, Ogilvie Terrace, Harrison Gardens, West Bryson Road, Bryson Road and Fowler Terrace, the idea being to provide an attractive alternative to cycling along the canal towpath, which is often busy with pedestrians.
The online meeting was organised by walking campaign group Living Streets Edinburgh and included Rurigdh McMeddes, the city council’s senior manager on the project, who set out the proposals and answered questions.
He was asked: "How do you justify all the bus stops becoming bus stop bypasses, given some of the problems disabled people express?"
Mr McMeddes said the council did impact assessments which considered the needs of all user groups, including people with visual and mobility impairments.
And he continued: "Bus stop bypasses are a reasonably standard form of infrastructure now. As long as they are designed correctly they tend to perform very well.
"We try and make sure we are designing for all users - we think about sightlines, how busy footways are and pinch points.
"The minimum width for an island in the street design guidance is 2.2 metres, so all the bus stop islands in this project comply with the minimum.
“There is one location where the bus stop bypass island becomes the footway, so that would be a deviation and we would capture that in a risk assessment where we would consider the competing requirements of different users in the scheme. It was felt the footway there was quite a lot quieter there than on the rest of the scheme."
David Hunter, convener of Living Streets Edinburgh, raised questions about the cost and complexity of the scheme.
He said: "There is a lot that's very good for pedestrians here, for example the new crossings at the Diggers junction, which has been a dreadful place for pedestrians for a long time.
"But there are big backlogs going back 10 years or more for many pedestrian crossings where they have been asked for by local communities.
“The budget for this scheme is about £10m. Why couldn't a cheaper project be designed which would meet most of the design aims which would leave significant sums available to deal with some of the more regular, mundane improvements which communities have been looking for across the city?"
Mr McMeddes said the estimated cost was an outline figure because the project was at an early stage.
And he continued: "The designs are providing a level of safety for people cycling in this corridor that is intended to be an appealing alternative to cycling along the canal, so there is a certain level of provision we need to meet there to make sure people of all ages and abilities are safe and comfortable cycling on this route, so we do need to make changes to junctions and the layout of the street to achieve that."
But Mr Hunter said: "I still find it hard to understand why a scheme that's got a budget of £10m can result in pavements which are below your absolute minimum widths in several places and there isn't general footway widening."
The consultation runs until January 12.
Mr McMeddes said: "These are still outline proposals and we are seeking feedback - and we will take account of that feedback before we move into detailed design and construction."