June 2020
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Time stands still Pandemic puts a stop to city clocks
By Phyllis Stephen Many of the clocks situated in and around the city have stopped, all at the wrong time. The famous Balmoral Hotel clock stands still at 6.25, so yes it is still correct twice a day. Usually the landmark timepiece is set five minutes ahead of time to ensure that passengers make it to their train - but how many of us are
travelling by train at the moment? David Dorward, Botanical Services Manager, (bottom photo) and Senior Gardener, Tam McKirdy, have begun working on the Floral Clock in Princes Street Gardens where the design was intended to celebrate the 350th anniversary of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE). Instead the newly designed floral display will say thank you to the
NHS and key workers. The RBGE has fully supported the redesign which will be a tribute to those who have kept us safe and kept the city moving. The City of Edinburgh Council Leader, Adam McVey, said: "Our legendary floral clock will be paying tribute to the ongoing hard work of the NHS and key workers who we’re so proud of. People love to see the clock every summer and
it's undoubtedly one of our Capital’s most cherished attractions. My hope is - once it is safe to do so - the clock can be enjoyed by all. "A huge thanks to our fantastic parks team who have put together the design and are currently hard at work to realise their vision." As there has not been enough time to fix the mechanism on the clock it will not actually keep time this year.
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Edinburgh gets £5 million funding for temporary active travel measures In an exciting piece of news, The City of Edinburgh Council was awarded half of the Scottish Government's £10 million Spaces for People budget. These monies fully fund councils in setting up temporary measures to deal with the social distancing requirements that Covid-19 will require as we move out of the lockdown. We spoke to Transport Convener Lesley Macinnes just before the government announcement. She said: "This news is a clear indication of the ambition of what we're doing here in Edinburgh, and a recognition of the validity of our approach. "We have done some work already, but it's essentially been fairly easy road closure measures. This is about the bigger picture of the resurgence of car travel. I have been lying awake worrying about the possibility that we will lose all the ground that we have already gained. It's happening in cities all over the place, and we need to work out how to combat that right from the word go. Clearly, active travel has to be one of those routes, and I am anxious to get as much on the ground as quickly as possible. "We can say that the next schemes will be on Warriston Road and on Stanley Road. This again is about road closure in particular in relation to to leisure and exercise. The next two will be on Old Dalkeith Road and Crewe Road South - both about access to hospitals. The council's transport officers prepared a list of short, medium term and long term goals for active travel measures in the city." Cllr Macinnes said that this list will be combined with an extensive list suggested by the public. She said: "We've also got all the suggestions that have been coming in which have been phenomenal. We've had an enormous response from Community Councils, and from individuals, demonstrating a kind of latent desire that's been stirred into action." Continued on page 7