In the Ward of Liberton/Gilmerton there is one huge junction which has presented many safety concerns in the past.

Today the local councillor Lezley Marion Cameron asked the council to examine the junction and take action to make it safer. This has the full support of the local community councils and the local school community who both presented written deputations to the council.

The deputation by the Liberton and District Community Council (LDCC) laid out the history of the junction over the last two decades at least, with relation to pedestrians, cyclists. It also suggested that as the council has a policy of active travel this could only be encouraged if the junction was ‘made more manageable for pedestrians and cyclists’. This active travel would, it is suggested, include access to Cameron Toll, Braid Hills, walking to the school, and accessing bus stops on Liberton Road.

The community council also made some helpful suggestions about actions to be taken – these date from 2017 which shows how long the residents of this area have been trying to get something done here:


• Improved road markings and signage to define lanes of travel

• Sufficiently long phase after traffic lights change to enable slow vehicles and cyclists to clear the junction or an advanced green light on Mayfield Road for southbound cyclists
• Extended cycling box on Mayfield road so that southbound cyclists can start on the flat
• Restricted parking within the junction 

• Single yellow lines on Mayfield Road to extend to at least 9:30am

• Extended double yellow lines from the junction on both sides of Liberton Brae
• No right turn signs from Liberton Brae to Kirk Brae
• Reduced pavement on Liberton Road to create more space for cyclists and vehicles • Visibility of traffic lights to be altered to avoid confusion.

The Liberton Primary School Association also presented a deputation which included mention of vehicles travelling at more than 30mph, the narrow bumpy pavements, and helpfully included a link to a video of some children and parents walking to school from Alnwickhill with local MP Ian Murray. This highlights the difficulties pupils have in getting to school without a pedestrian crossing in place.

The motion asks: “Council notes constituent concerns and representations to Liberton and Gilmerton Ward Councillors and the Liberton and District Community Council, regarding public safety at the major road junction where Liberton Brae, Kirk Brae, Mayfield Road and Liberton Road converge, caused by increasing traffic flows into, and from, this part of South Edinburgh.

“Council calls for an assessment of conditions for pedestrians and cyclists to be made at this junction; and a report thereon to be submitted to the Transport and Environment Committee within 3 cycles, outlining what steps can be taken to promote, protect and improve public safety at this major junction, and to encourage more people to adopt and embrace Active Travel choices in this part of South Edinburgh.

“The report to include indicative costs and timescales.”

Cllr Lezley Marion Cameron said: “The deputations have highlighted the reasons why this hazardous and busy junction should be assessed. I would hope that officers will look at the options to make this junction safer to negotiate. I also appeal for enforcement to be looked at, as at any time there is parking on Liberton Brae. With the amount of new houses and the fact that the junction is operating over capacity – we need 20mph on Liberton Brae.”

In seconding this, Cllr Lesley Macinnes, who is both the local councillor and the Transport Convener, explained there had been substantial community concern about volume of traffic and the effect on safety. She said: “This community has real issues of getting children to school. I welcome the fact that some work has already been done and I hope that the report will be informative and useful to us and to the community.”

Cllr Stephanie Smith, another local councillor, said that safety is paramount and suggested there has never been a better time to look at this.

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Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.