Business owners and locals in Portobello have said they are ‘over the moon’ after controversial plans for a Controlled Parking Zone were thrown out by Edinburgh Council.
16:19, 17 Dec 2025Updated 21:17, 17 Dec 2025
Mike Porteous, the Portobello Frame King, said shopkeepers are ‘over the moon'(Image: Edinburgh Live)
Edinburgh shopkeepers and residents are ‘over the moon’ after controversial parking plans were thrown out. Hundreds of complaints were lodged after Edinburgh Council proposed a CPZ in Portobello.
The issue was debated by councillors on Tuesday, December 16. The Traffic Regulation Orders sub-committee voted five to four against it. It comes after Edinburgh Live spoke to several business owners and locals in the area who strongly opposed to the plans.
Business owners told us they were thrilled by the ‘victory’, and urged the council to ‘understand why people opposed the CPZ with such passion’. The plans would have seen drivers pay for parking with a limit of four hours, or required to buy permits.
Councillor Margaret Graham, Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) Sub-Committee Convener, confirmed the council had ‘no plans to raise this issue again for the foreseeable’, however argued that pressure in Portobello ‘will not simply disappear and unrestricted parking may cause further issues going forward’.
Concerns were raised over the ‘death of Porty’, with shopkeepers fearing shoppers would opt for nearby centres such as Fort Kinnaird. Mike Porteous, who runs the Portobello Framing King on the High Street, shared his feeling after the plans were scrapped.
Mike told us: “We’re in a Porty traders WhatsApp group and it’s just been ‘bing, bing, bing’ with all the positive responses. Especially for Jane at the Velvet Easel. She was really instrumental in helping stopping it going ahead. It’s really positive.
“She’s getting a lot of praise for all the hard work she did. A lot of flyers handed out, and a lot of emails sent. Everyone is just over the moon that it’s not going ahead. It’s hard enough making a living just now.
“All of us are trying our best, and with the roadworks earlier this year it’s been tough. The CPZ was another obstacle we didn’t want to deal with. So there’s a lot of relief that we don’t have to deal with it, and people can still come down to Portobello and enjoy the day without paying for parking.”
Jane Grant, owner of the Velvet Easel Gallery and Chair of the Portobello Traders Association, added: “This week’s vote is a victory for the people of Portobello and thousands of visitors we welcome each year to ‘Edinburgh’s Seaside’.
“This debate was never about whether you like cars or not – it is about ensuring the voices of the people who live and work here, the vulnerable who rely on carers to visit their homes, and recognising the impact of a parking tax on visitors, beachgoers and shoppers who support local, independent businesses. All of that would have been under threat had the CPZ been allowed to proceed.
“We are thankful to the Liberal Democrat, Conservative and SNP councillors who listened to the many concerns of local people and responded as representatives of those people. We are disappointed councillors chose to ignore the more than 90 per cent of people who told the Council that the CPZ would destroy the character of our community, and we urge them to engage meaningfully to understand why people opposed the CPZ with such passion.”
Ranald Leask, from Portobello and Joppa Residents & Businesses Against CPZ, said: “The vote by councillors to defeat this tax on visitors, residents and small businesses in Portobello is a hugely significant moment for the people of Edinburgh.
“More than 90 per cent of those who responded to the council’s survey registered their strong opposition to a plan that would have devastated already struggling businesses which the local community relies on and would have placed yet more financial strain on households facing a cost-of-living crisis. In 2021, the council’s informal consultation to impose a parking tax resulted in overwhelming rejection by local people and visitors to Portobello.
“Despite this, the council chose to push on regardless on a plan they knew was opposed by most people. Now, the council has a duty to accept this clear and unequivocal public rejection and commit to permanently shelving any plan to charge for parking in Portobello.
“The Council should be supporting local people and businesses, not levying a regressive tax which hits the poorest in society hardest.”
Councillor Margaret Graham, Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) Sub-Committee Convener said: “The detailed proposals which were debated yesterday aimed to manage the known parking pressures in the area and create short-term parking opportunities on the High Street for residents and visitors.
“These pressures will not simply disappear, and unrestricted parking in an area like Portobello which attracts a lot of visitors, may cause further issues going forward. However, following Committee’s decision these proposals will not be taken forward.
“We have no plans to raise this issue again for the foreseeable future.”
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