Sunset Song village to paint yellow lines primrose

Auchenblae, in Aberdeenshire and, inset, Lewis Grassic Gibbon. Pictures: Wiki Commons

Councillors today agreed that traffic markings in Auchenblae, Kincardineshire should be a more mellow shade of yellow “in sympathy” with its conservation status.

The issue was discussed at Aberdeenshire Council’s Kincardine and The Mearns Area Committee as a new traffic management plan for Auchenblae was approved.

Officials say the village has become busier, with restrictions needed to stop illegal parking and increase the safety of pedestrians and other road users.

Stuart McFarlane, Aberdeenshire Council’s roads manager for Kincardine and Mearns, said: “The colour will be a lighter yellow and less harsh to tie in with the conservation area.

“No-one should have any misunderstanding that they are double yellow lines.”

Residents have objected to the introduction of double-yellow lines in Auchenblae in the past, given its picture-postcard appeal.

The village was granted conservation status last autumn. Its name is a derivation from the Gaelic for “Field of Flowers” possibly due to the growing of flax in bygone days.

It;s said to have important historic interest as an early mill town of the late 18th Century, and was known for its weavers, a distillery, and the annual Paldie’s Fair horse market.

It has 75 listed buildings with the conservation status protecting buildings on the village’s Inverurie Street, High Street and Market Square, as well as the school and parish church.

One councillor queried if altering the colour from the standard yellow could cause confusion for drivers.

Ian Mollison, Liberal Democrat member for North Kincardine, said: “As a driver, when you see double yellow lines you know what they mean.

“If you see primrose or cream lines, well I am sure it’s very tasteful but you don’t have a clue what they mean.

“You might think a local resident has been at it with a tin of Dulux.”

There was a mixed reaction to the double-primrose line plan among Auchenblaesians -- the name given to people who live in Auchenblae.

Joiner Alexander Adams, 60, said: “If it is a conservation area, there should be no double-yellow lines at all if they want to keep it the way it was.”

Liz McDonald, 50, said: “I think it is a bit mad. If the double yellow lines are primrose, will people just ignore them?”

Another resident, who asked not to be named, said: “Lewis Grassic Gibbon said that you’d almost ‘cry for the beauty of The Mearns and the sweetness of the land and skies’ -- so it’s worth doing things more tastefully here.”