Immediate popularity of Kelvin Way traffic ban prompts calls for closure to be made permanent

At the weekend the normally busy Kelvin Way in Glasgow was populated by cyclists, children and people out exercising rather than its normal west end car traffic.

That was after Glasgow City Council implemented a temporary traffic ban on the street to support social distancing amid the coronavirus crisis.

And now, just days after it began, calls are being made to make the move permanent, allowing for further space to and through Kelvingrove Park for city residents.

Community Organisation Carfree Glasgow are among those to have done so, in a tweet calling for Kelvin Way and other road closures remain permanent after lockdown.

Kelvin Way is closed to traffic to allow more room for pedestrians during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic ((Craig Williamson / SNS Group))

They tweeted: "We’re pleased to see that Glasgow City Council has closed Kelvin Way - the road we closed for our first World Carfree Day celebrations in 2018 - to make more space for distancing.

"Let’s hope this and other road closures remain permanent after lockdown."

And plenty of folk have followed suit in calling for traffic ban to remain in place.

While others hope that the closure, and its immediate popularity, might help prove a catalyst for change to move beyond a preferential treatment for cars post-lockdown.

Something that we are sure there would be plenty of support for out there.