If you are a vehicle driver in the West End of Edinburgh then watch out for Pop Up Bob.
Bob looks like a police officer. And wherever you stand he has his eye on you!
There is a pop-up Bob in Eglinton Crescent in the West End where we stopped to have a look. At first local residents told us it was a council initiative, but it seems to be something employed by Police Scotland.
Superintendent Mark Rennie of Edinburgh’s Police Division said: “Alongside high-visibility patrols and safety cameras, the ‘pop-up Bob’ prop is used in areas to help deter speeding and is a visual reminder to drivers to make sure that they drive in a responsible manner.
“The cut out of a police officer holding a speed gun, which is not used in place of genuine officers, can be deployed to areas where speeding has been reported as an issue.
“Road safety is important to those who live and work in the city and as such is a divisional priority that we are committed to tackling along with our partners.”
There may be other pop-ups elsewhere in Scotland too so keep your eyes open and let us know if you spot any others.
Edinburgh is now a 20 mph city. The final phase of the new speed limits across the capital came into effect on 5 March 2018.
Cllr Adam McVey the council leader told The Edinburgh Reporter that as part of the agreement the the council has with Police Scotland drivers have been charged with speeding in 20mph zones. But the overwhelming message from Cllr McVey at a recent SPOKES meeting was that peer encouragement will in the long run work better than enforcement.
He suggested that it will take a change in culture to stop everyone speeding in the city.
Professor David Begg, a former Edinburgh Transport Convener who spoke at the same event applauded Edinburgh for introducing the lower speed limit, but had a rather more radical solution. He said : “In my day it was speed bumps that were introduced. But the solution is that drivers should not control the speed of their vehicles. The answer is autonomous vehicles.”
Whatever the solution, we quite like Bob, and would love to have him on our street!
Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
