Integrative Project D27IP 2010/11

Individual Submission

Access
Introduction
The way in which people enter and move around the project plays a vital role in ensuring our
proposal runs efficiently. Being an eco-friendly project, modes of transport to and from the site is
of particular importance in the battle to reduce our carbon footprint and preserve the planet.
Details of how to get to the site and how to move around shown here as well as information on the
green alternatives our project encourages people to choose.
General Access
The proposed site (marked E on figure 2) is bound to the
North by Research avenue which links into the A71 and then
onto the busiest road in Scotland, the M8 motorway. This
makes the site easily accessible by car to all of central
Scotland and beyond. It is only 1.2 miles from the Edinburgh
City bypass which provides access to the East and South of
Edinburgh.

Figure 1 Site Access

In and Around the Site

Curriehill Train Station (D) is a mere 2.1 miles away which runs
from Edinburgh Waverly to Glasgow Central, covering a huge
area of central Scotland. There is a possibility of a shuttle bus
during busy events which will transport people to the project
from the station.
Figure 2 Map of Local Transport Links

There are two main entrances onto the site,

one from the North leading into the car park
and one from the south which will be used by
cyclists and pedestrians. The entrance to the
car park is shown as a blue arrow in Figure 1
above. The various pedestrian and cycle paths
are shown by red arrows with site entrances to
the North and South.

As Edinburgh Airport (B) is located 6.1 miles away with a

Edinburgh Trams
Service Access
There may be a possibility
A series of paths link the entrances and the two
to link the site in to the
Access for deliveries and
main buildings as well as the terrace area. A
Edinburgh Trams project in
maintenance are located
Figure 3 View
of the Research
Entrance
pathway
leadsCentre
overService
the pond
from the south
the future, providing
to the rear of the
towards the main research building and car
another mode of green
research building as
Emergency Exits
park. The centres of the mini roundabouts
shown in figure 1. The
shown in Figure 1 host an array of different
unloading bays are set
Emergency exits are marked with redflowers
crossesand
on figure
as well
asis shrubbery and
bushes1and
there
parallel to the
the existing exits. These have been placed
at strategicthe
positions
trees throughout
site.
surrounding roads which
around the perimeter of both buildings to allow people to exit the
will give quick, easy
building quickly in the event of a fire.The Research centre is accessed by two main
entrances integrated in the glass front and the
Group: A

Sub-Group: 5

Name: Andrew Gibb

Programme: MEng Civil Engineering

Professional responsibility: Access and Transport

Integrative Project D27IP 2010/11

Individual Submission

Transport and Car Park

Zero Carbon Travel

Car Park

As the project aims to preserve the planet and be

environmentally friendly, there are ways in which we can
reduce the impact of transport on the environment. The site
is a 5 minute walk from the Hermiston Park and Ride and
the school is directly opposite the Heriot Watt University
which will encourage people to walk these journeys instead
of driving.
A charge will be applied in the car park which will also have
few spaces to discourage the use of car travel. Bike travel is
greatly encouraged and there are bike racks placed
throughout the site to reduce clutter and promote bike
travel.
Bike Rental Scheme
Figure 4 City Bike Scheme, Denver

Bus Routes
The 34 bus route leads
round the site allowing
access to the bus via
both the existing stop to
the south and by the
new stop which will be
constructed on
Research Avenue to the
North of the site. This
service provides a 40
minute journey to the
city centre and allows
travellers to park at the
Hermiston Park and
Ride (marked F on
Group: A

Sub-Group: 5

The project will employ a bike rental scheme where bikes

can be hired free for the first hour and then a small fee will
apply for each hour thereafter. This has proven to be a great
success in cities such as Paris and London and will reduce
the use of cars and therefore emissions will be lower. Figure
4 demonstrates a City Bike Scheme in operation in Denver,
Colorado. The project will demonstrate this idea to the city
Electric Vehicles
As the purpose of the project is
to research future technologies
and ways to protect the
environment, the employees
will be encouraged to drive
electric or hybrid cars.
Maintenance and other
company vehicles will also be
electric to maximise the effects.
These produce much less or
zero emissions which will in
turn help to preserve the
Name: Andrew Gibb

Figure 7 Electric Cars

Programme: MEng Civil Engineering

Figure 5 demonstrates the layout of the car park, the

location of which can be seen in figure 1. There are only
33 spaces in the car park which will be charged at an
hourly rate, 5 of which are disabled. This will entice
people to leave their cars at home and use public
transport or car share, reducing the impact of travel on
the environment.
A durable interlocking plastic grid system will be installed
on the surface of the car park (Figure 5). This strong
plastic is filled with layers of soil and grass is planted so
that the car park appears to be a field of grass. This is a
form of SUDS and prevents flooding and erosion. The
GRB grid from Grassform Group is made entirely from
recycled plastics and is also recyclable itself. The system
requires minimal maintenance in that the cars which
drive over the grid wear the grass down so it doesnt
require mowing as often and no other maintenance is

Figure 5 Plastic Grid Grass System

Figure 6 - Car Park Plan

Professional responsibility: Access and Transport