West Fife set to welcome Olympic torch
Published 8 Jun 2012 08:30
11 Comments
WEDNESDAY promises to be a "historic occasion" as the Olympic Torch arrives in West Fife.
The flame for London 2012 will light up the streets of Cairneyhill, Crossford and Dunfermline as the countdown continues to this summer's Games.
And while the torch relay is an exciting milestone on the road to the start of the Olympics and Paralympics, residents and businesses have been told to plan ahead.
Fife Council has warned of "significant travel delays", road and school closures and disruption to some of their services.
Grant Ward, head of leisure and cultural services, said, "We look forward to welcoming the relay to Fife but also want to remind organisations and businesses they need to plan ahead and find out what changes are in their communities.
"As well as preparing for significant travel delays during the relay the council wants people to know about other services changes including road closures.
"As well as keeping up with those changes, we'd also like Fifers to tell us what they are planning and how they intend to mark this historic occasion.
"There are several ways they can do this including through the council's Facebook and Twitter sites."
The Olympic flame will be paraded in the north east of the Kingdom on Tuesday and will visit West Fife on Wednesday afternoon.
The torch relay will reach Cairneyhill and Crossford around 3pm and will arrive in Dunfermline at Pittencrieff Street at approximately 3.20pm.
From there, it will follow a route to Carnegie Drive before turning right onto St Margaret's Drive and will make its way to Bothwell Street, St Leonard's Street, Hospital Hill and Queensferry Road, finishing at Pitreavie business park.
From there the relay will make its way in convoy mode to Edinburgh across the Forth Road Bridge.
To allow pupils to watch the relay the four high schools - Dunfermline, Queen Anne, St Columba's and Woodmill - will close two hours early on Wednesday.
Bus passengers travelling through Dunfermline, Cairneyhill and Crossford and the Forth Road Bridge area between 3 and 5pm have been warned they "will experience major delays".
For motorists, there will be a temporary one way system in place between 1am and 7pm on the following Dunfermline roads: the Coal Road will be southbound only, Lovers Loan and Milton Green will be eastbound only.
There will also be waiting restrictions on the A823 (east side) from Sinclair Gardens roundabout to Pitreavie roundabout, the A994 (both sides) from Cairneyhill roundabout to William Street and the A907 (both sides, north side only on dual carriageway) from William Street to the Sinclair Gardens roundabout.
Deliveries and short-term parking for shop customers on the route will be permitted up until two hours prior to the torch's arrival.
And the council warned that failure to comply may result in your vehicle being towed away.
Refuse collections will be earlier and bins due to be picked up that day will need to be at the kerbside by 6.30am.
A leaflet to highlight the arrangements for the torch's arrival in West Fife is available in local offices, libraries, GP surgeries and sports centres, with copies already sent to community councils.
There is also information on www.fifedirect.org.uk/olympictorchrelay which will include information on Olympic torch community events, the torch route and torchbearers carrying the flame through Fife.
This article appeared in Dunfermline Press 06 Jun 12
Have your say. Post a comment on this article.
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Monet1
31 posts
Jun 8, 08:58
Report commentLooking forward to it immensely :-)
Bill Walker arrested! OMG what a disgrace he is for Dunfermline!!!!
Recommend?
Yes 62
No 45
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Clarky
2 posts
Jun 9, 19:44
Report commentWhat a load of trash. A handful of people are making fat coin out of this torch thing and the mugs who support it make me cringe.
Yay its 2012, lets drag a torch through the streets and all because... of a fast runner, or a high jumper, or who can throw a pointy stick.
Belongs in 0BC.
Recommend? Yes 60
No 77
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shopaholic
25 posts
Jun 9, 21:42
Report commentWell don't go and see it and don't support it. You have the choice.
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No 50
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Scotbox
18 posts
Jun 10, 01:16
Report commentNorth East and West Fife ........
Why couldn't the convoy, at least, have gone through central Fife instead of a re-route through Cupar on its way to Kinross.
Some planner didn't "get" Fife!
Recommend? Yes 17
No 18
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BobTheBuilder
111 posts
Jun 10, 18:55
Report commentI don't really get why the high schools need to finish at 12.30 to allow pupils to watch an event that begins at 3? Do primary age kids, whose schools will finish at 3 as per every other day, not merit the opportunity to see the flame? Great if you attend Crossford, Pittencrieff or St Leonards as they're on the route, but let's face it, fairly difficult for anyone else. Why not just close ALL the schools at, say, 2.15 if it's that important for the younger generation to soak up the atmosphere and 'once in a lifetime' opportunity?
Recommend? Yes 53
No 77
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Blackadder
272 posts
Jun 10, 20:11
Report commentHa ha, Bob is that Fife Cooncil's propaganda? The reality is the high schools are finishing at lunchtime so as not to add to the inevitable traffic chaos. A bit of a novelty really, forward planning by Fife Cooncil.
However, I'm with you on primary schools also being afforded the same opportunity. The police are advising that folk are in place by 2pm to watch the convoy. Are you aware that if you remove your child from school in time to adhere to this advice, your child will encounter an unauthorised absence mark. (Rulings from above headteachers).
Why the discrimination indeed?
In this sad "cirriculum for never learning" ethos of "learning experiences" as opposed to actual learning, this would be a perfect opportunity for Fife Education Services to give themselves a self congratulatory pat on their spineless back. But hey ho, the kids can see it next time around. Can't they?
Recommend? Yes 57
No 88
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MrsScottsWeeLaddie
48 posts
Jun 11, 11:56
Report commentWelcome the Olympic Torch? Er no, not really! I couldn't be less interested in Londons Olympics! Oooh a torch is coming to West Fife...Oooh how exciting ....NOT!
Austerity measures, credit crunch, wage freezes, credit status downgradings, increases in tuition fees, unemployment, you're going to have to work longer for less pension, cuts, closures and reductions in services - but hey let's celebrate London's hosting the Olympics? A big earner for London fat cats I'm sure, absolutely no benefit for Fife, or the vast majority of Britain, but guess who'll be picking up the tab?
Historic Occassion? Historic rip-off more like!
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No 78
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BobTheBuilder
111 posts
Jun 11, 18:21
Report commentIndeed, Blackadder. Yes, I did know about the absence issue - bizarre considering some schools are positively encouraging pupils to go to see it! I was always of the understanding that ALL schools create traffic problems though, not just secondaries; indeed primaries probably cause more. I presumed that's the reason tens of thousands have been spent on travel plans, 20 limits, speed humps etc around schools? I knew about the buses going away early - that makes sense. But, how will the buses from St Margarets, for example, be expected to complete their routes along the same sections of road that secondary school buses have to use two hours ealier to avoid congestion? Forward thinking, maybe; joined up thinking.... er, clearly not.
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Angus
38 posts
Jun 12, 14:05
Report commentI wonder how many of the runners were picked by the sponsors...?
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JimGallagher
3 posts
Jun 12, 19:39
Report commentStudOfThurso - the vast majority of people feel they can get behind the Olympic spirit. That it is lost on you is quite sad. There are lots of things going on in Fife and beyond that I am not at all interested in but I don't act like I am the supreme arbiter of what is interesting. We are all different, that alone should be celebrated. Might be nice if you could just sit back and ignore the things you don't understand rather than play the party pooper.
Recommend? Yes 59
No 13
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******
Jun 12, 22:22
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MrsScottsWeeLaddie
48 posts
Jun 13, 09:00
Report commentJim G - Good for you that you feel you speak for the "vast majority" some may think that a tad arrogant? At a time of austerity (for some!) The London Olympics and the expense of it is not above criticism. It's relevance to Fife is also surely worth comment? Expressing your opinion on the issues raised is what these posts are about and your quite entitled to disagree with mine! However - "not understanding - party pooper"? Dear oh dear Jim, maybe you should have a little step back and have a look at yourself, supreme arbiter? Pot - kettle...black?
The London Olympics are as relevant to me as the Beijing Olympics! However my tax money didn't pay for Beijing! Think about it?
BannedXXX. How rude?
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No 51
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Jun 13, 14:04
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Jun 13, 14:10
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Jun 13, 15:00
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Jun 13, 18:29
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