Five things you need to know today Edinburgh!

Waverley Access works continue today

Edinburgh Napier is 50!

Local Development Plan

Riding of the Marches

Midfest 2014

The second phase of work to improve access for pedestrians around Waverley Station will get under way on Waverley Bridge today and are scheduled for completion in December.

The overall scheme, costing around £1 million, involves carriageway resurfacing and the widening of footways on Waverley Bridge and Market Street.

Works also include the installation of upgraded drainage, kerb realignment, laying of sandstone and Caithness paving and improved pedestrian crossing facilities.

The initial phase of works on Market Street was completed earlier this summer and included the creation of a temporary taxi rank, new loading areas and a cycle lane.

From today lane width restrictions will be in operation at the NE & SW areas of Waverley Bridge.

Pedestrian access will be maintained at all times and the Waverley Bridge taxi rank will be moved to the south east side at the existing motorcycle bay.

Tour buses are being relocated to St Andrew Square for the duration of the works, however Airlink buses will presently continue to use their current location on Waverley Bridge.

Councillor Lesley Hinds, Transport Convener, said: “These improvements to the streetscape around Waverley Station will make a big difference to how accessible the area is for pedestrians, cyclists and all road users.

“We’ve been pleased to work closely with Network Rail in recent weeks to make sure it’s as easy as possible for station users to find their way to taxi ranks, pick-up and drop-off points and, most importantly, transport connections for their onward journeys [eg tram and bus] once they’ve arrived at Waverley.”

***

Edinburgh Napier University marks 50 years of learning with a giant birthday party today.

Members of staff who turn 50 this year – Gillian Davies, Lorna Proudfoot and Sarah Montgomery, and alumnus Ken Brown – will help cut a large cake during a day of celebrations across all three campuses.

The Golden Jubilee event will also feature an outsize birthday card, party decorations, number one hits from across five decades and golden ticket prize giveaways on cupcakes.

Professor Andrea Nolan, the university’s Principal and Vice-Chancellor, said: “We are very proud of our history and felt that our 50^th anniversary was an ideal opportunity to celebrate our many success stories in education, business, industry and science.”

The university has already produced a website, magazine and blog which recognise key events and highlight some of the achievements of the past 50 years.

***

The Local Development Plan is out for consultation till next month. You have time now to have your say and you can do that on the council website here. If you live in Currie and Balerno then here is Gordon MacDonald MSP explaining his concerns over what the LDP means for that area.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWZ3Pk7r_k0?list=UUpyjaNvEF_ryiKTJ6QxCkIA]

***

The Edinburgh Riding of the Marches was quite a sight yesterday. We have some photos here but you will be able to watch the video of some of the proceedings by clicking here.

***