An Edinburgh resident who suffers from cerebral palsy has said he is being ‘ignored’ by the council after the new traffic measures introduced will make his life ‘impossible’.
The authority's pilot Low Traffic Neighbourhood Scheme or LTN in Corstorphine aims to create a "safer and more comfortable street environment for residents to walk, cycle, wheel, and spend time in." Measures proposed include banning through traffic from certain streets.
Last month, Edinburgh Live reported that a group of residents including cyclists and motorists have banded together to oppose the plans as they claimed the measures were making roads more dangerous. Now a local with disabilities has spoken out about how the scheme will make his life more difficult.
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Originally from Edinburgh, Grant Douglas, 48, has lived in the Corstorphine area for 11 years and was awarded an MBE in 2018 for inventing a spoon for people who suffer from hand tremors.
The cerebral palsy sufferer struggles to walk and relies solely on his car to travel. Due to the timings of the LTN’s bus lanes, he is forced to stay at home at some parts of the day and can’t make his way to basic necessities such as the bank, cafes and to his local supermarket.
The local resident lives by himself on Featherhall Road which has many traffic management systems in place due to a school being right beside his home.
Grant said: "I can’t walk that far and I rely on my car, I can’t get to my closest shops, I can’t get to any shops between Iceland and the roundabout during the hours that the LTN operates. It is too dangerous for me to walk to the shops; I can’t take a left at Featherhall Avenue it is becoming impossible.”
“If I want to go to the bank or if I want to meet someone for coffee, I just can’t do it, I can only do it during the times that have been allocated. It is virtually impossible for me to move around.”
“I think Edinburgh City Council have totally ignored disabled people in implementing this. They need to put in a system with cameras that will recognise people’s registration numbers so we can pass through without getting fined.”
Grant is fortunate that he is knowledgeable about the new traffic management system in place and has not been fined yet and went onto say: “Why should I not be able to go out to see my friends or go to a coffee shop?” He finished by saying “it just isn’t fair.”
“I haven’t had any contact from the council or anybody else, they do not care.”
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Grant has led an amazing life whilst overcoming his disability and to this day works full-time.
In 1997 he graduated from Edinburgh Napier University with a bachelors in computer science and for 18 years worked countless jobs aiding people in care who cannot look after themselves.
In 2015, Grant founded the company, S’up where he worked with developers to invent a spoon for disabled people and others who suffer from hand tremors. The spoon has a lid and three years later because of worldwide success, we now have a spoon available for those with smaller mouths, including children which is called the mini-S’up spoon.
This led him to be awarded an MBE in 2018 by Queen Elizabeth II.
Grant enjoys skiing and works closely with Disability Snow Sports UK where he got to go on a trip of a lifetime to California in America and even met Pippa Middleton.
Councillor Scott Arthur, Transport and Environment Convener, said: “We really want everyone to share in the benefits of Corstorphine Connections, and the changes we’re putting in place are about making it much easier and safer for people of all abilities to walk, wheel, cycle and relax in their local community.
“We’ve retained access for all residents travelling by car too, alongside these changes, so that those who need to can drive to and from their homes. The measures we’re introducing are also helping people who don’t use cars or who would like to travel by other means to do so.
“For example the changes on Kirk Loan were following feedback from people in wheelchairs who previously often couldn’t use the street due to pavement parking. Similarly, we’ve increased seating around the area to provide people with limited mobility with resting places so they can move around more easily.
“Officers spent a great deal of time engaging with people who live in the area when developing this project, and the final layout has built on feedback received. However, we’ll continue to monitor the scheme as part of the Experimental Traffic Regulation (ETRO) process and would welcome any views during the ETRO period. I’d be happy to meet with this resident to discuss his concerns too.”
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