'˜What's the worst thing about living in Edinburgh?' post goes viral

Edinburgh is one of the best cities in the world but, like anywhere, there are some features of the Capital that residents could do without.

Some users complained about the new 20mph zones. Picture: JP

A post on social media has gone viral after users were asked “what’s the worst thing about living in Edinburgh?” on the news aggregation site Reddit.

Locals and out-of-towners flocked to the city’s topic page, which has over 9,000 subscribers, to share what they thought the Capital could do without.

Suggestions ranged from city issues to personal bugbears as people rushed to express their Edinburgh gripes. Among the list of grievances were students, slow-walking tourists, 20mph zones, pollution, cyclists and the wind.

The Capital’s weather came up more than once, with one commenter who identified himself as ‘LordCake’ saying: “For me it’s the weather. Sure we’re heading into summer and it will be okay for a while, but 9 months of the year it’s a cloudy cold dire mess.

“Hell, even when its sunny you can count on a strong wind to negate any potential warmth.”

One user wryly replied: “The weather in Edinburgh is decent. Source: Glaswegian.”

The size of the city’s seagulls was another bone of contention among posters but one commenter suggested they weren’t as big as elsewhere in Scotland.
‘Boost_fae_bams’ said: “Having lived in Aberdeen for a few years, moving back to Edinburgh reminded me of the acceptable size seagulls SHOULD be.

“In the Aberdeen ecosystem there are no other pests of other kind, the seagulls are so dominant they’ve forced themselves to the top of the food chain. Count yourselves lucky down here!”

The Capital’s newly rolled out 20mph zones were also in the cross hairs of many.

The new speed limit which is now in force across most of the central suburbs has proved controversial among residents.

Council chiefs have argued the city-wide initiative will keep more people safe, adding a pilot scheme in 2012 also encouraged more people to get out on their bikes or public transport.

Drivers caught at the old 30mph limit face the threat of £100 fines and three penalty points.

Other annoyances included: Tory voters, “entitled” drivers, Princes Mall “emos”, white cider bottles along the Water of Leith and the lack of snow.

Speaking earlier this year, John Donnelly, chief executive of Marketing Edinburgh, said Edinburgh was “among the most beautiful cities in the world” and deserved its international reputation.

But he added: “That said, there is always room for improvement.

“Edinburgh is a small city, but that is changing. As the population expands and visitor numbers increase, we need to take new approaches, grow infrastructure and develop innovative partnerships that will ensure Edinburgh remains one of the best places in the world to live, work, study, invest and visit.

In November the Capital was named the third best city in the UK to live and work – for the fourth year in a row in the 2016 Good Growth for Cities index.