Princes Street fire: Rose Street businesses reopen after 9-day closure forced by Debenhams blaze
Cycle hire fleet to be increased to help cope with suspension of trams
Edinburgh council chiefs said today that businesses on Rose Street which were forced to close by last week’s Debenhams fire would reopen on Saturday.
The go-ahead for the reopening was given after officials carried out inspections at the premises to check for any damage.
All businesses affected by the closure of Princes Street following the fire on July 9 are being offered one-to-one advice and support by council teams. And council leader Jane Meagher has written to the First Minister to request additional Scottish Government support for businesses.
Princes Street is expected to remain closed between Frederick Street and South Charlotte Street until August while experts assess the condition of the fire-damaged building and make it safe.
But the council said contingency planning was underway to help limit the impact of the closure on transport, the Festival and other events.
It said it was working closely with Voi Bikes, who run the city’s cycle hire scheme, to provide additional capacity, particularly in and around Leith, in view of the suspension of tram services from the city centre to Newhaven due to the Princes Street closure.
The cycle hire fleet is to be expanded from 800 to 1,000 bikes by the end of next week. And additional bike parking infrastructure is being arranged in the city centre to accommodate those travelling into the city from Leith and Newhaven.
Although trams are currently only able to operate between the Airport and Shandwick Place, the council said “all options” were being explored to re-establish operations along the full route as soon as possible.
Sunday’s Edinburgh Festival Carnival has been re-routed so it can still go ahead and traffic diversions have been put in place to help travel to and from the Scotland v Fiji rugby match on Saturday.
The council said “complex and time-consuming” work was continuing to make the fire-damaged building safe and preserve as much of its heritage value as possible.
Cllr Meagher said: “There is no doubt that recent events on Princes Street continue to have a major impact on the city centre and beyond, but I’m pleased to see progress being made, both in terms of preserving and making the building safe and reducing disruption in the area.
“I’m acutely aware of the effect this is having on city centre businesses and our teams are continuing to offer one-to-one advice and support. We’re also in touch with the Scottish Government about available support and I’ve written to the First Minister to discuss what more he can offer – as he did following the Union Street fire in Glasgow.
”There’s a huge amount of work going into restoring the tram to its full route as soon as possible. But I do want to stress that this can only happen when it’s safe to do so.
“We’re in regular contact with festivals and event organisers with a view to limiting disruption to our events calendar, and I'm delighted that we’ve found an alternative route for the wonderful Edinburgh Festival Carnival so it can still go ahead this weekend.
“We’re also hopeful of being able to find alternative locations for some of the events and attractions displaced from George Street.
“This road closure is essential to protect the public while experts assess the condition of the fire-damaged building and make it safe, but we’re letting everyone know that the city centre is very much still open for business and encouraging people to check our website for the latest travel advice and information on visiting the area.”