‘Free North Bridge’: Controversial refurbishments continue despite backlash

North Bridge has been undergoing refurbishment for four years, with works initially projected to last nine months, and scheduled to finish in 2022. Since then, opening has been delayed three times with the works presently projected to finish by the end of the year.

The City of Edinburgh Council has announced further closures on North Bridge, as northbound traffic is diverted for six weeks. This is the latest in a series of closures throughout the city centre bridge’s refurbishment, first started in 2021.

The works have long been divisive among local residents, and their complaints went viral through the Instagram account @free.northbridge. Their first post appeared in April 2024 (three years into the bridge’s incarceration), and over the next few months a series of Instagram Reels calling for a #freenorthbridge would garner hundreds of thousands of views.

The account’s posts generally include two distressed Edinburgh residents pleading with the Council to release “our beautiful bridge” and to “make northbridge naked again”.

The activists have since amassed over 2,000 followers – affectionately called their “loyal scaffolding munchers” – as well as many commenters expressing solidarity with the cause.

In response to a Tab survey, 92 per cent of over 550 respondents supported the “Free North Bridge” movement. Many echoed the frustrations of @free.northbridge, mentioning the “huge overcrowding issues”, as well as increased commutes to university and workplaces.

One respondent speculated: “Something about the bridge compels people to walk slower” while another shared that they have resorted to walking through Waverley Station instead, as “it’s genuinely less painful”.

One went as far as to call the works “an infectious stain upon the city. Everyday the work continues, the end draws near”

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However, until the end finally dawns, the Council remains aware of the anger delays have caused – transport and environment convener Stephen Jenkinson said: “I’m conscious that this work is taking longer to complete than we had initially anticipated”

“This is this a hugely complex project, with the historic nature of the bridge requiring painstaking and specialist work to restore it to its former glory”

Controversy has also arisen in response to the Free North Bridge movement, with some commenters highlighting the pressure construction workers are under.

Works proved to be significantly more complex than first assumed, with the Council deeming the refurbishment a “major project” involving multiple “technical challenges”. 

For better or for worse, North Bridge remains clothed.

Cover image via @free.northbridge on Instagram.

The City of Edinburgh Council has been approached for comment and has not yet responded.