Why should I Love Leith?

The more people who choose to walk, cycle or take public transport the better Leith will be for everyone. We've put this presentation together to illustrate why.

Changing the way you travel can improve your mental well being, and helps to reduce stress levels. If you start walking and cycling on a regular basis you will dramatically improve  your physical health too. Just one hour of cycling per week, can cut your risk of getting cancer by a third, as well as reducing your chances of developing diabetes or heart problems. It also adds many years onto your life expectancy.

The benefits don't just stop at the personal level though. In neighbourhoods where traffic is reduced because lots of people walk, cycle, or take public transport there are less road accidents, less noise, less air pollution and better relationships between neighbours. Where people travel more by walking and cycling, they are more productive at work and need less expensive health care too. In fact these taxpayer savings are so great, that it outwieighs the cost of investing in good quality streets that encourage people to walk and cycle many times over.

In Leith, there are sometimes problems with local air pollution caused by traffic on Easter Road, Great Junction Street and Leith Walk. Sometimes the pollution is so bad that it breaks European Union Laws. We should all be concerned about this, as local air pollution is linked to health problems like Athsma and Lung Cancer. In fact, it is estimated that air pollution causes 24,000 premature deaths in the UK each year. We could make sure none of these premature deaths occur in Leith, by choosing to travel in a better way.

If you need to drive a car for some journeys, then we're asking you to take some simple steps to cut the pollution your journey makes by adopting 'Eco-driving' techiques. Did you know you can cut your fuel use by about 15% just by changing the way you drive and maintain your car? By 'Eco-driving' you know you're doing your best to cut pollution and you're saving yourself money.

Lot's of people in the city have a car, but only use it for odd trips. If this sounds familiar, it would be less hassle, and cheaper, to join the City Car Club. This is because every Car Club Car on the road takes about 20 private cars off the road - helping to free up space on our streets for things that encourage more people to walk and bike, like proper cycle lanes, or street trees. When dedicated cycle lanes are installed, the number of cyclists on the street increases by 15 - 40%. An increase in the numbers of people cycling is better for all of us - even if you're not one of the cyclists!

Many of us have recently taken steps to try to be more green. Perhaps you've started recycling more, or you've fitted energy efficient lightbulbs in your house? These are great first steps, but we all need to do more. In Scotland, our carbon footprints are still growing - and the way we travel is the fastest growing part of our carbon footprint. Therefore we need to take action to change the way we travel if we're serious about tackling climate change. The best way to do this is to walk, cycle or take public transport more.

You can join the movement by making a 'We Love Leith' pledge. Not only will your pledge help to improve Leith, it'll also inspire more people to Join the movement! Make a 'We Love Leith' pledge now!