South Queensferry residents bemoan large car gatherings along waterfront

Residents in South Queensferry say their living situation has become “untenable” with large groups of people meeting in cars along the waterfront on a near nightly basis.

Businesses and homes along New Halls Road in the scenic town have struggled with the level of noise from revving engines, beeping horns and loud music.

The meets can often last until the small hours of the morning, involving up to 100 people at a time.

There’s also concern around the speed at which cars race around the car park on the banks of the Firth of Forth.

Local Andy Scott told STV News: “It’s just got to a level now where it’s really quite untenable.

“I know some people have palpitations, can’t sleep at night, there’s a lot of people dread every evening

“I know of one lady who is sleeping in the bath because it’s the furthest part of the house away from all the noise”.

More than 100 people attended a town meeting last week that was described as “emotional”.

Local politicians and representatives from Police Scotland came along to offer reassurances but there’s still little idea as to how to tackle the issue.

Some residents are keen to see the car park gated off at night, and there is hope that a bigger police presence can deter some of the behaviour, with Police Scotland’s chief constable announcing a drive to recruit another 1,300 officers in the next year.

Mr Scott said: “I think at the end of the day there was a joint feeling, because of the passion and fear and angst and everything that was shown that something has to be done now.”

Scottish Liberal Democrat Leader Alex Cole-Hamilton, the MSP for the Edinburgh Western constituency, has engaged with the local community on the issue.

He feels the Scottish Government should establish a national taskforce on issues around high-performance, illegally-modified cars and motorbikes.

At First Minister’s Questions on Thursday, Cole-Hamilton said: ““For four years, my constituents have had their quality of life destroyed by hundreds of high-performance, illegally modified cars and motorbikes racing around their beautiful town.

“The drivers of these vehicles will abuse and intimidate anyone who approaches them where they gather, in the car park at the foot of the iconic Forth Bridge. Pets have been killed, hotels have lost trade, nobody is getting any sleep.

“The racing and antisocial behaviour is happening in Inverness, parts of Glasgow, Crail, many other areas.

“Will the First Minister meet with me and agree to establish a national taskforce to establish and examine what more can be done to address this criminal behaviour that is blighting so many lives?”

The First Minister told the chamber he was very sorry to hear of the situation.

He said: “The government engages substantively on the question of road safety. The cabinet secretary for transport has been briefing cabinet on her concerns about road fatalities, which are a very serious and current problem, so that issue is very much on the Cabinet’s agenda. I am very happy to have discussions with Mr Cole-Hamilton on the subject and to determine what further action can be taken.

“There may be some legislative issues that may be worth considering. I fear that some of those will not be within our areas of responsibility because they are road traffic issues, but I am happy to explore all possibilities.”

Police Scotland says the force is aware of incidents raised by residents and is working with partners to address the issues.