Car park plan to ease congestion at Barrhead school

The £350,000 project will demolish the former Arthurlie Family Centre, which is adjacent to the Roebank Drive school, and create an additional 25 car park spaces and 25 space drop-off area.

A link path will also be created to provide direct access from the new car park facility to the school.

A schedule for the work is now being developed and the project will be complete for the start of the August 2020 session.

Councillor Paul O’Kane, Convener for Education and Equalities, said: “Safety of pupils when travelling to school is an absolute priority and we continue to promote a range of initiative to encourage families to leave their cars at home.

“We understand that this is not possible for everyone, and there have been some issues at St Mark’s during drop-off and pick-up times due to the tight streets in the area. With no alternative use identified for the former Arthurlie Family Centre, this has provided us with the opportunity to create this additional parking and drop-off zone. Once complete it will be extremely important that drivers use it appropriately and its use will be closely monitored.

“It is important that drivers remember parking restrictions are in place around the school to help ensure a safe environment for children, and to allow other road users freedom of movement, so I would urge everyone to park appropriately and observe the restrictions which are in place.”

The former Arthurlie Family Centre was vacated in January 2018, when it relocated to the new Sir Harry Burns Centre, based in Barrhead’s Auburn Drive.