Edinburgh calls for views on new cyclesport facilities

City of Edinburgh Council has called for public input on its plans to create a hub for cyclesport in Hunter's Hall Park, to the south-east of the city centre.

A general plan to build some sort of facility in the park was announced in 2013, but the city council has now come up with four options involving different combinations of facilities, and is asking for the public's opinions

The park may get an outdoor velodrome, a BMX track, a road circuit and a cycle speedway track.

Cycling facilities will have to compete for space with general sports pitches. A road circuit, for example, will limit the number of grass pitches at the park, but the council says such proposals include all-weather '3G' artificial pitches which can handle many more games per day than grass pitches, so the venue's capacity would not be reduced.

The council therefore lists four options:

Option 1: A cycle speedway track and BMX facility, with one full-size 3G pitch and one smaller 3G kickpitch.

Option 2: A cycle speedway track, a BMX facility, plus a closed road circuit and an outdoor velodrome. This also has two full-size 3G pitches.

Option 3: A cycle speedway track, a BMX facility, plus a closed road circuit and two full-size 3G pitches, but no velodrome.

Option 4: A cycle speedway track, a BMX facility, plus an outdoor velodrome and two full-size 3G pitches, but no closed road circuit.

It was announced last year that Edinburgh's Meadowbank Velodrome will be demolished when the Meadowbank Sports Centre is redeveloped.

Britain's most successful Olympian, track cyclist Chris Hoy, began his track career at the Meadowbank Velodrome after crossing over from BMX. He said last year that he would like to have seen Meadowbank saved, but later welcomed the news of a velodrome at Hunter's Hall Park.