Main project areas
The project area covers
- Commercial Street
- Great Junction Street
- Leith Links
- Hawthornvale path to Seafield Road
- Replacement of Lindsay Road Bridge
Delivering a more liveable neighbourhood
We have taken measures to reduce non-residential through traffic in the area but ensured that you can still access all properties and businesses by vehicle.
Reducing or slowing down traffic through the neighbourhood will
- improve walking, wheeling and cycling conditions
- provide a better street environment for all residents, businesses and visitors
- create new places to meet friends, spend time and where children can play
We have made the following changes
- a southbound bus lane on Shore
- traffic filters to stop non residential motor vehicles or vehicles not visiting businesses, services or making deliveries travelling through the area. Vehicles can still access any residential and business address in the whole area
- improved existing and created new community spaces
- improved pavements by building out crossing points and dropped kerbs
- pavement changes to remove street clutter
- created new areas of on street artworks.
Foot of the Walk to Ocean Terminal
We will build a new active travel route from the Foot of the Walk to Ocean Terminal.
This will include
- a protected cycle route
- improved pavements
- upgraded side street crossings
- public space improvements
- sustainable drainage features
- new trees and plants
The current temporary layout at Sandport Place Bridge will be improved with new pavement surfaces and rain gardens with new planting.
The route will improve connections to the Water of Leith path and provide a key network link to the north of the city beyond the segregated cycle tracks built as part of the City Centre West to East Link and between Picardy Place and the Foot of the Walk.
The Council’s Transport and Environment Committee approved proposals for this section in August 2021. Following this, we advertised the required traffic and redetermination orders. In March 2023, the Transport and Environment Committee approved the traffic and redetermination orders and objections to the redetermination orders were referred, as required, to the Scottish Government. The Scottish Government has now confirmed we can make all orders as advertised.
This part of the project was approved as part of the final business case for the Trams to Newhaven project.
We have recently appointed a contractor to start these works in November 2024. The first phase of work will begin on Great Junction Street, Henderson Street, Sandport Place and Dock Street.
Hawthornvale to Seafield
We are planning public realm improvements and an active travel route between the Hawthornvale Path in the west and Seafield shared use path in the east.
This new route would go along Lindsay Road, Commercial Street, Bernard Street and Salamander Street. This part of the project contributes to delivery of the Local Development Plan Action Programme. It will support new residential development in the Leith area. New infrastructure is needed to provide safe and high quality active travel routes to enable more people to travel in sustainable ways.
We have been awarded further funding from Transport Scotland through the Sustrans Scotland’s Places for Everyone programme to continue design and community engagement on these proposals.
We ran a further community and stakeholder engagement exercise during October and November 2024. The results will be published shortly.
View our updated designs and complete our online survey
Lindsay Road Bridge
Lindsay Road Bridge connects North Fort Street and Lindsay Road and originally carried vehicular traffic over the North Leith branch of the Caledonian Railway. In recent years it has been a pedestrian and cycle bridge over the Hawthornvale Path forming an important link for walking, wheeling and cycling in the Newhaven area.
The bridge is 85 years old and approaching the end of its functional life. It was closed in December 2021 due to its condition and the resulting immediate health and safety risk.
Following preparation of a feasibility study we now have funding from Transport Scotland through Sustrans to complete the design of a replacement bridge deck and deliver it as part of the Leith Connections project. This will further improve connections around the area.
In the spring we held a series of events and conducted an online survey to gather input from the public on the proposed design for a replacement. We also engaged with a number of specialist and local community groups.
Many thanks for all your feedback, which we have looked to incorporate in the final design. We have now submitted a planning application under reference 24/04552/FUL, which is available to view on the Edinburgh planning portal. Once the design is fully completed and completion of statutory processes, we will move forward with confirming construction funding and timescales for construction.
