City of Edinburgh Council are currently running a consultation on the retention of ‘Spaces for People’ measures, which have been put in place during the covid pandemic. The measures were put in place to:

• help parents/carers and children to physically distance near schools
• help people to physically distance while using high streets, some city centre streets, and while exercising
• provide protected cycle lanes on main roads, so that people can consider cycling for trips that they might otherwise make by public transport.

The Council is considering whether to keep some ‘Spaces for People’ measures in place, either on a trial basis or more permanently. This is because many of the measures may to help achieve Council objectives unrelated to the Coronavirus pandemic, including:

• encouraging more people to switch to more sustainable ways of travelling such as walking or cycling
• supporting high streets and city centre businesses by providing more space for people
• improving road safety
• improving health
• reducing carbon dioxide emissions, to help Edinburgh achieve  net zero carbon  by 2030.

Before deciding whether to go through the legal processes necessary to keep projects in place, the Council want to hear people’s views.