Tuesday November 25th 2025
The silver car on the left crashed earlier this year in Newlandrig, Midlothian.
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Marie Sharp
Midlothian is in danger of being crowned the ‘speed bump capital of Scotland’ it was claimed as plans for traffic calming measures to be introduced in a rural village were delayed.
Nearly all residents living in Newlandrig, near Vogrie Country Park, have signed a petition demanding the bumps are introduced to stop speeding traffic.
However a meeting of Midlothian Council’s cabinet heard concerns speed bumps were not the solution and could bring more disruption to the quiet community.
Local ward councillor Stuart McKenzie said in other rural spots where speed bumps had been introduced residents were now disturbed by tractors going over them at 4am creating additional noise.
And he urged fellow cabinet members to hold off deciding on action until he had a chance to go ‘door to door’ and talk to people living there to ensure they understood the negative aspects the measures could bring.
He said: “We need to be sure people living there understand speed bumps are not a panacea, they come with their own issues.”
Fellow cabinet member Colin Cassidy acknowledged the petition from residents in Newlandrig but warned once the bumps were installed they could be approached again to have them removed.
Councillor Cassidy said: “I have had people contact me who have had speed bumps put up outside their housing telling me when lorries pass by, because of the close proximity of the houses to the street, they have had pictures falling off walls.
“I don’t see speed bumps as a permanent solution, looking at social media the amount of people who have commented that we are turning into the speed bump capital of Scotland, we have them cropping up everywhere.
“This isn’t just detrimental to the people living in these places, it is also detrimental to the people using these roads to get to work. Their cars are getting damaged. Garages will tell you it is not because of pot holes any more because we are on top of that, it is because of speed bumps.”
A petition drawn up by residents showed all but two of the 17 residences in the village backed the call for speed bumps with one of the two who did not sign it reported as vacant.
Members heard the village was covered by a 20mph speed limit which had been introduced across the county but the number of complaints about speeding traffic continued to come into officers.
Cabinet was told the council had installed a permanent speed monitor with visible message signing (VMS) at either side of the village but a consultation set out additional options including building out the village gateways, introducing countdown markers on the road, speed bumps or additional signage and street lighting with the majority of residents keen on speed bumps.
However the report said the bumps were not favoured by Transport Scotland and councillors agreed more work was needed to ensure residents understood the benefits and drawbacks of the measure.
Members were told that traffic islands were also an option but residents opposed additional lighting in the road.
Cabinet agreed to delay a decision on the measures to be taken in the village to allow further discussions until its next meeting.
Council leader Kelly Parry said: “What I will say to those residents is that there will probably have to be a compromise whether it is on the speed bumps, lighting or islands however we will go away and do the work.”
Interested to know how councillors make their decisions then watch the video below which shows the full Midlothian Cabinet discussion of the Newlandrig speeding issues.
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