Statues standing tall as plans to shift them ditched

Published on Friday 5 September 2008 09:54

CONTROVERSIAL plans to move some of the Capital's most famous monuments in order to make way for tram roadworks have been abandoned.

Statues of George IV and William Pitt – which stand in the middle of roundabouts in George Street – were meant to be moved ahead of plans to divert hundreds of buses on to the street when Princes Street closes to traffic next year.

Instead, tram firm TIE has now worked out a way of diverting the traffic, which means the statues can remain in place.

Traffic islands around the 19th century statues will be reduced and special protective barriers will also be put in place.

The roundabouts will be reinstated once the temporary diversion of traffic from Princes Street is completed.

The latest statues development was today welcomed by Edinburgh-born artist Alexander Stoddart, whose work includes statues of David Hume and Adam Smith on the Royal Mile. He had warned that moving the George Street statues could potentially ruin them.

Mr Stoddart said: "I am over the moon. All credit to the officials for realising the need to manage their major infrastructure projects without incursions on to the materials of the city."

The statue of George IV on the junction of George Street and Hanover Street was erected as part of commemorations to mark the visit of the King to Edinburgh in 1822, while a bronze statue of prime minister William Pitt the Younger has stood at the junction of Frederick Street since 1833.

A spokesman for TIE said: "TIE's traffic modellers have devised a solution that does not require the expensive removal of the statues on George Street.

"Instead, the size of each traffic island will be reduced and the statue plinths protected.

"Each junction will be signalised and provided with pedestrian crossings.

"This solution is the most cost and time effective, whilst balancing the needs of pedestrians and managing the increased traffic on George Street."

A number of other famous landmarks are also making temporary and permanent moves as a result of the work, including the statue of Sherlock Holmes on Picardy Place, the Heart of Midlothian War Memorial at Haymarket, and Eduardo Paolozzi's three-piece work The Manuscript of Monte Cassino, which sits at the top of Leith Walk and includes a sculpture of a giant foot.