70s rush hour ban set to go

A THIRTY-YEAR-OLD rush hour ban on parked cars on a Stockbridge street is set to be scrapped within months.

At present, nobody can park on Raeburn Place from 8am to 9.15am, and from 4.30pm to 6pm. Between 9.15am and 4.30pm, drivers can buy tickets from pay-and-display machines and park in designated bays.

The move was introduced in the 1970s so that emergency vehicles could get through busy traffic more easily. But businesses have claimed they lose up to 30 per cent of their trade because of the ban.

Last year, the council agreed to abolish the restrictions, and changes to the traffic regulation order were advertised. The sole complainant – Lothian Buses – has now withdrawn its objection.