Esplanade to be converted to single lane

A MAJOR transformation of Kirkcaldy’s waterfront could be completed by the end of next year, it has been claimed.

Councillor Neil Crooks, the convener of Fife Council’s Kirkcaldy area committee, has said that one of the town’s busiest roads will be reduced to a single lane in each direction a bid to create more leisure space and car parking.

Designed to tie in with a host of exciting projects along the waterfront, Mr Crooks believes the project is the key to unlocking the town’s economic potential.

Confirming that contracts for the huge scheme would be advertised within months, he said: “I have always said that we needed to replace some of the car parking that was lost when we built the swimming pool on the busiest car park in the town.

“We were originally going to go out to tender in October but we have pushed this back to January as we keep getting ideas that could be factored in.”

Councillors have long been determined to transform the town’s waterfront to create better ties between it and the town centre.

With the Esplanade seen as the main obstacle to this, traffic surveys have been carried out by the council’s transportation department with the results concluding that a single carriageway in each direction would be able to sustain the volume of traffic.