Towpath Improvement Works on the Union Canal
From Thursday 19th February, we are working with contractor Coltart Contracts to make some improvements and repairs to towpaths along the Union Canal in Edinburgh, extending westwards from Hailesland Park.Â
Affected Activities
- Union Canal cycling
- Forth & Clyde and Union Canals walk
With funding the Scottish Government via Walk Wheel Cycle Trust, we will resurface areas of towpath that have been damaged by tree roots and remove any roots that are causing significant bumps in route surfaces. We will also upgrade the barriers at Walker and Meggetland bridges. All of this work will be completed by early April.
You can see the dates and locations of towpath diversions below. Our contractor will work between the hours of 08:00 and 16:00 (Monday to Friday), which will limit the closure of these sections of the towpaths to those hours only (keeping the routes fully open during typical commuting times).
In some locations there are no suitable pedestrian diversions possible. We apologise for any inconvenience caused by this and we will work to reopen the towpath as soon as possible.
Locations
Walker Bridge (2 days) from Thu 19/02/26 to Fri 20/02/26
- Disruption either side of Walker Bridge.
- Works being undertaken are the realigning and repainting of the chicanes.
- Chicanes will be left with wet paint.
Recommended diversion on the day:
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Meggetland Bridge (2 days) from Mon 23/02/26 to Tue 24/02/26
- Disruption on Meggetland Footbridge.
- Works being undertaken are the removal and adjustment of bollards.
Recommended diversion on the day:
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Ogilivie Terrace – Footpath Sufacing (2 days) from Mon 02/03/26 to Tue 03/03/26
- Minor disruption may be experienced on the day but it is anticipated that full access to the towpath, park and road will be maintained.
Hailesland Park from Wed 04/03/26 to Thu 05/03/26 to Thu 05/03/26 to Fri 06/03/26
- Disruption on either side of Hailesland Park road bridge.
Recommended diversion on each day (red arrow indicates path not on Google maps):
Clovenstone Road Bridge from Mon 09/03/26 to Mon 16/03/26
- Expect disruption on either side of Clovenstone Road bridge.
- Works be undertaken are removal and resurfacing of damages caused by tree roots.Â
Recommended diversion on each day:
Murrayburn Road Bridge from Mon 16/03/26 to Tue 17/03/26
- Expect disruption on the east side of Murrayburn Road bridge.
- Works be undertaken are removal and resurfacing of damages caused by tree roots.
Recommended diversion on the day:
Wester Hailes Road Bridge from Tue 17/03/26 to Fri 20/03/26
- Expect disruption to the east of Wester Hailes Road bridge, below Wester Hailes High School.
- Works be undertaken are removal and resurfacing of damages caused by tree roots.
Recommended diversion on the each day:
West Hermiston Bridge Mon 23/03/26 to Wed 25/03/26
- Expect disruption between West Hermiston Bridge and Gogar Station Road bridge.
- Works be undertaken are removal and resurfacing of damages caused by tree roots.
Recommended diversion on each day (note Hermiston House Road has no pavement and is not suitable for pedestrians):
Gogar Moor Bridge to Ratho Thu 26/03/26 to Tue 31/03/26
- Expect disruption between Gogar moor Bridge (Gogarmuir Road) and Ratho.
- Works be undertaken are removal and resurfacing of damages caused by tree roots.
Recommended diversion on each day (please note Ransfield Road has no pavement and is not suitable for pedestrians):
Ratho Bridge (Baird Road) and the Edinburgh International Climbing Arena (EICA) from Wed 01/04/26 to Wed 08/04/26
- Expect disruption between Ratho Bridge (Baird Road) and the Edinburgh International Climbing Arena (EICA).
- Works be undertaken are removal and resurfacing of damages caused by tree roots.
Recommended diversion to the EICA on the days (note there is no accessible access from the EICA to the canal towpath):
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