Edinburgh Council's Spaces for People project meets fresh opposition in the shape of South West Edinburgh in Motion (Swem) – Steve Cardownie

The city’s Spaces for People programme has attracted its fair share of criticism of late and the SNP/Labour administration on Edinburgh City Council probably heaved a collective sigh of relief that 2020 was behind them and looked forward to implementing less controversial policies in the coming year, leading up to the council elections due to be held in May 2022.

The Spaces for People project has seen a number of changes to the road layout, including the introduction of new cycle lanes (Picture: Lloyd Smith)

The latest spat over the implementation of new traffic proposals under this programme therefore would likely be met with collective exasperation and a feeling of déjà vu.

Another community group has sprung up to protest at the traffic plans for Lanark Road, Inglis Green Road and Longstone Road. South West Edinburgh in Motion (Swem) representing all road users, including cyclists, has engaged the services of a QC who has advised them that to use the risk of Covid-19 transmission as justification for these measures could be unlawful.

This echoes the same situation in East Craigs/South Gyle last year where similar QC advice was given and which forced the council to amend its plans for that area.

The new scheme came into force on Monday and involves the introduction of segregated cycle lanes and bus lanes on four miles of road, which has led Swem to threaten legal action if the brakes are not applied and the scheme brought to a halt.

Given that the council endorsed a report last year which stated that such new measures would only be introduced “in collaboration” with local communities, it begs the question why then have these two projects in particular prompted the formation of community groups to oppose them?

If the local community’s views had been adequately canvassed and considered why did Professor Derryck Reid, an enthusiastic cyclist, write to Councillor Lesley Macinnes, the transport convener, on behalf of Swem calling for another scheme which would keep the community safe while meeting the council’s objectives?

The Prof certainly did not mince his words when he railed against the council’s community consultation exercise, saying “to date there has been no formal notification of residents, as when we carried out a professional survey through a market research company we found that only one third of residents had heard of the proposals prior to the council passing the motion. The council has done a terrible job in communicating what is going on and is being misleading by saying that there is massive public support for the proposals.”

The group contends that there will be a loss of parking which will affect thousands of people in the area and which will have a detrimental impact on local businesses. They maintain that their independent survey of more than 1,000 local residents and businesses showed that 89 per cent oppose or strongly oppose the plans.

In response to the current complaints about the measures applied in the south of the city, Councillor Macinnes stated that “throughout the development of this scheme we have listened closely to feedback from local people and groups, and have made changes in response to help make sure this scheme benefits as many people as possible”.

They both can’t be right but the council could clear matters up by making public exactly who they consulted and what changes they made as a result. Swem deserves answers and must be taken seriously.

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