Gorgie Road closure: Businesses' react to six-month closure of busy Edinburgh road

A section of Gorgie Road, a major road to the west of the city centre, will close from Sunday for works to upgrade the area’s sewage system, which are scheduled to last until July.

The stretch of the road between Balgreen Road and Robb’s Loan, near Saughton Park, will be closed to traffic with several bus routes diverted for the duration of the project.

The bustling street is home to dozens of businesses and is busy on match days with football supporters making their way to the nearby Tynecastle Park.

Hearts and Celtic fans will be flocking to Tynecastle on Sunday to watch the teams go head to head in the Scottish Premiership.

However, Scottish Water said the road will not close until 6.30pm - when fans will have left the area.

Akshay Reddy, a manager at Pepe's fast food restaurant, said the closure is likely to affect the store’s business “a lot” in the coming months.

“It’s going to have a big impact,” he said.

“It will be really damaging.

“It will affect our deliveries, how many customers we get walking in, and parking for our customers who come to the store from far away.”

Scottish Water has warned the construction work is likely to cause some disruption to the community and has urged people to allow extra time for their journeys.

Hayley MacPherson, a manager at Luckies pub, said while the team were “not particularly” worried about the impact of the closure on customer footfall, other pubs on the street were.

However, she said works can sometimes affect deliveries, with drivers thinking the street is inaccessible and returning to the depot.

Staff at The House of Hope, a community wellbeing centre for people impacted by breast cancer, are also concerned about the potential disruption.

Manager Hazel McLinden said: “We’re really lucky with where we are on the corner, meaning we’re less affected.

“Coming in won’t really be a problem but getting out if you’re turning right could be potentially horrendous.

“Lots of our visitors come on public transport and they know that it will take extra time. But the repairs need to be done.

She said that while she recognises the works “need to be done” she hopes six months is an over-estimation.

“It doesn’t seem that long ago since there was works on the road before,” she added.

Scottish Water said the £3 million project will see a new spill chamber constructed around the existing Victorian storm overflow under Gorgie Road near the park.

It said the aim of the work is to improve the water environment in the area by reducing sewer related debris entering the Water of Leith.

Lothian Buses confirmed that several services will be re-routed. Affected routes include the 3, 25, 30, 33, X27, X28, N25, N28 and N30.

A Scottish Water spokesperson said: “We have been speaking to the local community for some time to prepare them for the road closure and to listen to any concerns.

“We will continue to keep them informed throughout the course of the project and will do all that we can to mitigate any disruption.

“This is an important and much needed project that will deliver benefits for our customers, the community and the environment for many years to come.”