IT is a global movement that has been picked up by cities around the world that temporarily opens streets to people by closing them to cars.

And in Edinburgh, the last Open Streets event until October was enjoyed by thousands in the heart of the Capital.

The Open Streets concept began in America in 2011, aiming to improve the quality of life for people by drawing residents and visitors together, clearing the streets of traffic and staging events, from street parties to festivals, to make the most of the open roads and help clean-up air quality.

The city’s third Open Streets saw a host of events and activities take place, including a focus on enjoying Oor Wullie’s Big Bucket Trail, as well as free tours around Edinburgh’s historic Old Town, courtesy of Edinburgh Festival Voluntary Guided Walks.

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Between North Bridge and St Mary’s Street, there were street games, including Connect 4, chess and badminton, while Literary Walking Tours set off from the Scottish Storytelling Centre. There were also free yoga sessions on the High Street.

Social media users lit up Twitter and Facebook with images of the novelty of Edinburgh’s car-free routes.

On Twitter, Gary Sloan posted an image of a quiet Victoria Street, with pedestrians meandering on the actual road, saying: “Open Streets in Edinburgh today. No traffic.”

Friends of the Earth (FoE) Scotland Tweeted: “Open Streets is a great initiative which will improve air quality for one day, on the Royal Mile. Take two mins to tell the Council everyone in Edinburgh deserves clean air.”

And Aisha Moohan said on Facebook: It’s great for this weekend. At least the people are free to roam around on Edinburgh’s streets. Fun-filled activities and great weather.”

Not everyone was thrilled, though, with some social media users expressing dismay. Imy Saeed said: “Oh great this nonsense again.”

The city introduced the Open Streets as a pilot programme in May to create a “people friendly” route around the Old Town, saying it aimed to “promote a healthy, active, inclusive city; to celebrate and add to the culture of the city; to contribute to the city’s economy and to inform future initiatives”.

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Edinburgh was the first city in the UK to join the movement, which offers the opportunity to measure the impact of reducing traffic.

Councillor Lesley Macinnes, Transport and Environment Convener, said then: “We’ve seen how successful many similar schemes internationally have proved by encouraging active travel, improving air quality and creating a safer, more relaxed atmosphere.

“Climate change is a real threat to society. It’s clear that we have to act, and Open Streets is undoubtedly a step in the right direction.”

In Paris, where car-free Sundays see traffic banned from key areas of the city – including the Champs-Elysees from 9am to 4pm – there is a 35 per cent drop in harmful exhaust emissions during this period, according to air-quality monitoring network, Airpartif.

In Scotland, figures show around 2,000 early deaths are caused every year because of polluted air, which has been linked to heart disease and lung problems, including asthma.

Figures from FoE Scotland, released in January, revealed air quality on Scotland’s most polluted street deteriorated further in the previous year.

The two measures of air pollution are nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter (PM10), both caused by fossil-fuel engines.

And nitrogen dioxide levels on Hope Street in Glasgow averaged 60 micrograms per cubic metre (mcg/m3) in 2018 compared with 58 in 2017, while Queensferry Road in Edinburgh was second on the list for nitrogen oxide and it also became the most-polluted street for PM10.

On December 31, Glasgow city centre became Scotland’s first Low Emission Zone (LEZ), which discourages certain types of vehicles from entering a specified zone and sets an environmental limit on certain road spaces, allowing access to only the cleanest vehicles.

LEZs were first introduced in Sweden in 1996 and there are now more than 250 such zones across 15 European countries, either in operation or planned.

In 2017, the Programme for Government committed to introducing LEZs in Scotland’s four biggest cities between 2018 and 2020, and then into all other local authority areas deemed to have poor quality air caused by pollution by 2023. The zones were also included in the new Transport (Scotland) Bill, introduced in Parliament on June 8 last year, which set the national framework for Scottish local authorities to introduce and enforce the zones.

Aberdeen and Dundee are also due to create zones by the end of next year, while Edinburgh’s newly proposed zone is expected to be in place by the end of 2020. The next Open Streets in Edinburgh is due to take place on October 6.