Cone-troversy? World Cup statue prank wearing out its welcome

By Rachel Fergusson

Residents of a World Heritage Site have demanded the removal of “eyesore” traffic cones put on top of historical statues.

Members of Edinburgh’s Old Town Community Council said the outbreak of ill-placed orange cones had turned Scotland’s busiest tourist district into an “embarrassment.”

The tradition of topping the city’s statues with traffic cones, a prank long associated with Glasgow, exploded after the World Cup, when members of the Tartan Army went viral for their efforts to crown statues in Boston and Miami.

The craze has divided residents, while heritage bodies warned the trend put Edinburgh’s historic monuments at risk of damage.

Daniel Todd, chair of the Old Town Community Council, said the cones were “not even Edinburgh’s joke” and had become a blight on the city center.

He said while many of the cones have clearly been carried up North Bridge from the roadworks on Waterloo Place, others appeared to have been “scattered with no obvious purpose” with nobody from the council clearing them away.

But Todd said the stray cones were not the only problem, calling on the council to fix other cases of “shabby” street furniture, including the barriers and cones stationed at the junction of North Bridge, South Bridge and the High Street.

“There are planters, but alongside them are loosely placed temporary railings and random cones,” he said.

“It is a shabby, makeshift arrangement in one of the most visited spots in the city, and it looks nothing like a planned, permanent improvement to the street.

“The same goes for the temporary anti-terrorism barriers at the top of the Lawnmarket, outside the court buildings.

“They were put in to protect the crowds of visitors on the Royal Mile, but they have now been there for many years, and the barriers are regularly left open for traffic to come and go.

“Residents are left wondering what protection they actually provide, and in the meantime they are a real eyesore at the entrance to the Royal Mile.

“When significant public money has been spent on new permanent street bollards elsewhere on the Royal Mile, residents are entitled to ask why the rest of the street isn’t being managed to the same standard.”

He added: “This is Scotland’s capital, and the Old Town is its shop window. It is what visitors come back for year after year, and it is home to the people who live here.

“Residents want to take pride in the place they live, and the whole country should be able to take pride in its capital.

“At the moment, frankly, it is embarrassing.”

The residents are demanding Edinburgh Council urgently remove stray cones and signage from historic statues and memorials in the city center, as well as making it easier for residents to report them when they see them.

They are also calling for the temporary railings and cones at the High Street junction to be replaced with a permanent solution, or to be removed.

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James Garry, assistant director of the Cockburn Association, said the organization shared the residents’ concerns and that the examples in the Old Town are particularly noticeable because of the “prominence and sensitivity” of the historic setting.

But he said the problem of street clutter was not “simply a city center issue” and that similar problems can be found in communities across Edinburgh.

He said: “We have raised concerns before about traffic cones being placed on statues and monuments.

“There are obvious issues of respect, but also more practical concerns about personal safety and the risk of damage when people climb on structures that were never designed for that purpose.

“Cones and redundant signs should be removed promptly rather than simply left in place.

“Temporary measures are, of course, sometimes necessary, whether for roadworks, traffic management or public safety.

“But if they are going to remain in place for any length of time, they need to be actively managed and maintained.

“Barriers, cones and signs can be moved, damaged or displaced, and arrangements which were adequate when first installed can quickly become untidy, confusing or potentially unsafe.

“Someone needs to remain responsible for checking that they are still needed, properly positioned and fit for purpose.

“There is a separate question when temporary arrangements remain for months or even years.

“At prominent locations such as the High Street junction or the entrance to the Lawnmarket, there comes a point when a more considered solution is needed.

“If security or traffic-management measures are required for the longer term, they should be properly designed for their location and with the particular sensitivities of the Old Town in mind.

“We would therefore welcome a more systematic approach from the council and other responsible bodies: regular checks on temporary installations, clear responsibility for their maintenance and removal, and a simple way for residents to report abandoned or displaced cones, signs and barriers.

“That approach should apply across Edinburgh, not just in the city center.”

A spokesperson for Edinburgh World Heritage said: “Temporary infrastructure has a legitimate role in a modern city, but ‘temporary’ should not mean unmanaged.

“Where these measures remain for months or years, their design, maintenance and visual impact need to be considered as part of the historic environment.

“How we present our streets and civic spaces is how we present ourselves to the world.

“Cones, barriers, railings and signage all have practical purposes, but they should be properly managed, removed when no longer required, and designed and positioned with the character of the World Heritage Site in mind.”