Edinburgh councillor calls for a trial of changes at junctions to fight pavement parking

The design of some shared road spaces in the city could be changed to prevent cars blocking the path for people with sight issues.

Edinburgh councillors will consider a motion put forward to last month’s full council meeting by Liberal Democrat councillor Jack Caldwell, which claims pavement parking on continuous footways in the city is impacting pedestrians, and especially those with sight issues.

He now hopes to see the council undertake a trial to install tactile pavers at the point where the road and the pavement meet, in order to discourage pavement parking.

Cllr Caldwell’s motion says several groups representing those with impaired sight have spoken out about the issue, with charities raising concerns about the location of tactile pavers along the pavements.

An example of a continuous pavement, which aims to prioritise pedestrians over car traffic, off Leith Walk. | LDR

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Continuous footways are pavements which do not dip to street level at junctions, with the roadway instead coming up to the level of the pavement. They are meant to help prioritise pedestrians over cars at low traffic junctions, while also making it easier for walking and wheeling travellers to cross the street.

They are currently in use in some parts of the city, with several introduced along Leith Walk during the Trams to Newhaven project.

At present, continuous footways in the city have tactile pavers embedded in them to help sight impaired people understand where their edge is. But these pavers are set back from the edge of the roadway, leading to concerns that sight impaired people may not be able to accurately understand where the pavement ends.

And there are concerns that the lack of tactile pavers at the edge of the roadway may be signalling to drivers that it is okay to park on the pavement there.

According to the motion, it is unclear whether parking on continuous footways is illegal – however, they are not designed to be parked on.

The motion will be discussed at the next meeting of the Transport and Environment Committee, set to take place on Thursday, April 3.