Timelapse footage has revealed just how many car, lorry and van drivers are breaking the rules by driving through the pedestrianised area of Schoolhill in Aberdeen City Centre.
Back in January, Aberdeen City Council workers installed new signs on Schoolhill, marking out the new pedestrian and cycles only zone.
New paint was put on the ground for cycling lanes, and signs were erected telling the public that anyone except those on foot or bicycles are banned — with the exception of loading overnight and into the late morning.
But it wasn’t until recently that four big black planters were also put on the road, marking out the zone along Schoolhill between Back Wynd and Flourmill Lane.
However, even with these new blockades in place, hundreds of drivers a week have been breaking the rules.
We set up a timelapse camera to see for ourselves how many vehicles drove through the Schoolhill pedestrian zone in a working day.
More than 200 vehicles drove through the Schoolhill pedestrian zone in just over eight hours
From our vantage point above Schoolhill, our photographer recorded eight and a half hours of timelapse footage covering either end of the walking and cycling zone on Schoolhill on Wednesday.
Here’s that footage from 8.30am to 5pm condensed to seven minutes:
Despite the planters in place, scores of lorries, cars and vans simply drove past them and through the off-limits area.
- In total, we counted 202 vehicles which either drove straight through the zone, or entered it, realised their error, and u-turned before leaving it.
- We spotted about 15 drivers going through the zone from east to west, which is not permitted even for loading purposes.
- The most frequent offenders were car drivers — we counted more than 70 driving through the Schoolhill pedestrian zone.
- We also recorded more than 65 vans going right through the zone, and at least 15 lorries.
- There were also plenty of taxis, as well as a handful of motorbikes filmed by our timelapse camera.
The busiest time of day was around lunchtime.
This image was taken at 12.05pm, and shows many large vehicles taking up big parts of the streetscape.
Over the course of the timelapse video, most pedestrians can be seen to be walking down the pavements, or crossing at the lights between the two shopping centre entrances, with not that many people walking on the road surface itself.
Where exactly is the Schoolhill pedestrian and cycle zone?
The zone runs between the two sets of black plant pots, between Schoolhill’s junctions with Back Wynd and Flourmill Lane — or, between Boots and Upperkrust.
General traffic is not allowed in the zone, shown in yellow below, except for loading from 4.30pm to 11am.
For any vehicles accessing the zone when permitted, there’s an eastbound, one-way only system in place.
This means nobody is allowed to drive from Upperkirkgate along Schoolhill towards Belmont Street at any time.
Police crack down on Schoolhill drivers
Earlier this week, the police said they have been made aware of “concerns that a number of motorists are failing to adhere” to the new rules on Schoolhill.
Officers are now carrying out “high visibility patrols” of the area, and have asked drivers to make sure they know what the traffic restrictions are so they don’t get in trouble.
Why is Aberdeen City Council making changes to Schoolhill?
The council is creating a number of major road changes throughout Aberdeen city centre in order to create bus priority routes.
The changes started in December, when the straight-ahead lane from Trinity Quay onto Guild Street was shut.
Other major revamps to the city’s road layout, including new bus gates and access restrictions, were due to start early this year, but they have been delayed due to “winter weather”.
Cycling campaigner calls Schoolhill measures ‘a bit Micky Mouse’
Rachel Martin, campaigns secretary of the Aberdeen Cycle Forum, said the Schoolhill area is “not a pedestrian and cycle zone, despite what the council says”.
She explained: “I have been on that road since they painted a bicycle lane on one side, and there were cars parked in it.
“It’s really just a road for motor vehicles with a bit of pavement on either side.
“Painted lines are no longer accepted by anyone as adequate cycling infrastructure, so I don’t know what they were thinking.
“It’s all a bit Mickey Mouse.”
Aberdeen City Council was approached for comment.
New Aberdeen bus gates delayed for months due to ‘winter weather’
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