Residents in the Braid Estate have called for Edinburgh Council to maintain the Quiet Route implemented in the area, as councillors will vote next month on whether to retain traffic calming measures permanently.

The Greenbank to Meadows Quiet Route was implemented in the south of the city during the Covid-19 pandemic, restricting access to certain streets for cars and other motor vehicles.

Campaigners in favour of the changes say that the route promotes active travel and is safer for residents, while opponents argue that the route poses unnecessary limitations on vehicle drivers.

In March 2024, The City of Edinburgh Council’s Transport and Environment Committee (TEC) voted to dismantle traffic filters on Morningside’s Braid Estate, originally part of a Covid active travel scheme paid for by UK Government funding, and install segregated cycle lanes.

“Bike Buses” have been a popular mode for getting children to school as part of the Quiet Route. © Supplied

However, the plans were not implemented, and two Morningside councillors who took part in the vote – Marie-Clair Munro and Neil Ross – were censured by the Standards Commission in March 2026 for failing to declare that they lived in the vicinity of the proposed route.

The Standards Commission deemed Cllr Munro and Cllr Ross’ lack of declaration to be in breach of the Councillors’ code of conduct.

TEC is to revisit the decision at the upcoming committee meeting on 1 June, and a group of residents have voiced their concern over the possible removal of the filters in Morningside.

The group, who wished to remain nameless, said: “Residents from across the Braid Estate support the retention of the entire Quiet Route on a permanent basis.

“We have seen the significant benefits in reduction of pollution, increase in active travel and improvement in overall environment and pedestrian safety.

“Several schools use the route for school bike buses and to access outside learning.

“Elderly pedestrians and resident families now feel more confident to walk, wheel and cycle in and through the area.

“We would like to see an extension of these measures to streets which need further traffic calming”.

Opponents of the Quiet Route include groups such as Keep Morningside Moving and Braid Estate Safety First, who argue that the pre-Covid measures were more beneficial to drivers.

TEC will debate three options: Option A would remove the Quiet Route as a whole, Option B would introduce a further 18-month “trial” period for an amended route without modal filters, and Option C would retain the current route design and decide whether to make it permanent.

Option C is viewed by pro-Quiet Route campaigners as the most cost effective option as it would require the least amount of construction work – and funding.

A petition by campaigners, titled “Save Our Streets“, attracted more than 900 signatures in support of keeping the Quiet Route measures in the Braid Estate.

One signatory commented: “I have lived in Cluny Drive at what was always intended to be at the heart of a residential area and quiet, enjoyed (and safe) by all of all ages for nearly 70 years!

“It must never be allowed to become a rat run and dangerous to its pedestrians and cyclists of all ages and uses.”

Another commenter said: “I use this as my route for commuting to work. It has greatly increased the safety of the route, it’s easy to remember how stressful the journey was before Covid and the measures were reduced.

“It’s great to see families using this route to get to school. Until we make our streets safer for children we will never truly be a cycling city.”

In deputations at the previous TEC meeting, a representative from Blackford Safe Routes, who support the Quiet Route, said that the “removal of the modal filters will result in the loss of safe routes for pupils walking and cycling to many schools in the area.”

Jane Brown, a pensioner living on Braid Avenue who suffered a brain haemorrhage three years ago, also spoke during a deputation at a recent TEC.

While she has since recovered, Jane’s condition means she is no longer able to drive and so relies on walking and cycling to commute.

In her deputation, Jane called the route a “lifeline” for people like her who depend on it for getting about.

She said: “The people who suffer most from an unsafe infrastructure are always the most vulnerable. It is not just the fit and the competent who use routes like this, it is older residents keeping themselves mobile and independent for as long as they possibly can.

Jane also delivered a deputation to council following the death of 11-year-old Thomas Wong, who died after being hit by the driver of a bin lorry while cycling in Edinburgh in March 2024.

Like this:

Like Loading…

Related