Greens back call for better active travel near Tranent
Employees at a major East Lothian firm have written en masse to local council candidates demanding better active travel links to their work place.
The letter highlights the issues with the B6414 - a popular route which is also used by students getting to Midlothian College and by horse riders, cyclists and dog walkers on a regular basis.
Currently the route is underserved by public transport and has poor or non-existent pavements.
In a letter sent to Council election candidates, Charles River Institute employees said:
The site is in a remote location in Tranent. Many colleagues choose to take public transport or walk to work for environmental and economical reasons. Many bus routes do not stop right at the entrance to the site, meaning that the last part of the journey to work is completed on foot along a road where there is currently no pavement and has a 60mph speed limit. You will agree this is a dangerous situation.
In addition to the lack of pavement, there is also a distinct lack of street lighting. This makes the walk even more dangerous for staff during morning and evening in the winter months.
The site, which employs 1,300 people and is the second largest employer in the county, is also close to new housing developments which have not seen infrastructure keep pace with demand.
In reply, Marnie Stirling who is standing in Tranent, Wallyford & Macmerry ward for the Scottish Greens said the issue highlighted the lack of progress made in developing active travel alongside new housing and work places:
We have been really impressed by the number of people who have taken the time to email about this issue and who are obviously really committed to using active/public transport routes to get to work and we agree that employees should be able to do so safely.
This route is in desperate need for upgrade, for a whole range of safety reasons.
Our locally produced manifesto pledges to always prioritise public and active transport networks, and one of the priorities I chose to put on my election leaflet was to make sure everyone had the choice of whether to drive or cycle to work or education, so this is definitely one of my priorities.