Local residents have expressed their serious disappointment at plans to bring in car parking charges at Harlaw and Threipmuir. One declared: “Parking charges are for the city, not for the countryside.”
Dog walkers and walkers expressed their feelings during a 25-minute debate at the September meeting of Balerno Community Council (BCC), and the view of fishermen who regularly use the car park at Harlaw were also expressed. Many are pensioners and there could be a well-being issue here if they were denied their fishing fix because of the cost of parking charges.
Councillor Neil Gardiner, who is chair of the Pentland Hills Regional Park committee, said there were parking charges at other sites in the area, including Yellowcraigs Beach in East Lothian, and stressed that the charges were to raise money for improvements in the regional park including extending car parks, repairing stone sykes and paths. Money would also be used to extend the Ranger service and he said that the introduction of charges was the result of a survey in 2021 which backed the introduction of ticket machines.
Those in the room questioned the validity of that survey and one community councillor said that the currently popularity of Harlaw and Threipmuir with walkers, dog walkers, cyclists and fishermen meant that more car parking was required. The current car parks are not big enough.
The meeting learned that the city’s Transport and Environmemt Committee was to consider, at its meeting on 11 September, a recommendation to commence a Traffic Regulation Order procedure which could see charges being introduced at Harlaw and Threipmuir. Proposals for charging include daily charges from 6am to 10pm plus overnight parking charges for cars and mobile homes or caravans.
There was considerable criticism of the process adopted by the City Council, Richard Henderson, chairman of BCC, said that the people of Balerno had not been properly consulted ahead of the publication of the current recommendations and suggested table of charges.
The 2021 survey may provide cover in general terms for introduction of charges, but the community was entitled to be consulted on the detail. In any event, it was far from clear that the community had been fully aware of the 2021 survey.
Having listened to the arguments Councillor Stephen Jenkinson, convener of the transport and environment committee for the City of Edinburgh Council, said he would talk with colleagues about the parking charges as set out in the recommendation to the Transport and Environment Committee.
BCC will consider the outcome of the 11 September and may meet again before October in the light of that.
PICTURE: Charges close-up at Harlaw.
PRIME SITE: The parking metre beside the toilet block at Harlaw Reservoir.
THREIPMUIR: The meter in place in the car park.
