Newbridge, Edinburgh

Summary

Newbridge is a village in the civil parish of Kirkliston, west of Edinburgh in Scotland. It formerly lay on the western fringe of Midlothian, but it has belonged to the City of Edinburgh since 1975. The original village consists of a small crossroads settlement to the east of the eponymous New Bridge, which spans the River Almond. Around it is a confusion of roads and industrial estates converging on the Newbridge Roundabout, the meeting point of the M8 and M9 motorways.

Newbridge
Newbridge from the air
Newbridge is located in the City of Edinburgh council area
Newbridge
Newbridge
Location within the City of Edinburgh council area
Newbridge is located in Scotland
Newbridge
Newbridge
Location within Scotland
Population1,270 (mid-2020 est.)[1]
Council area
Lieutenancy area
  • Edinburgh
CountryScotland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townNEWBRIDGE
Postcode districtEH28 8
Dialling code0131
PoliceScotland
FireScottish
AmbulanceScottish
UK Parliament
Scottish Parliament
List of places
UK
Scotland
55°56′21.80″N 3°24′28.97″W / 55.9393889°N 3.4080472°W / 55.9393889; -3.4080472
The flooded workings of Hillwood Quarry, south of Newbridge, dolerite was extracted here

Newbridge (including Ratho Station) had a total population of 1,074 at the 2011 Census based on the 2010 definition of the locality.[2]

Archaeology edit

Excavations in advance of a phased commercial development in 2007 and 2014 by AOC Archaeology revealed human activity in Newbridge from the Mesolithic to the medieval period. Radiocarbon dating put the earliest human activity in the area at 6640–6230 BC. There was a scatter of domestic settlement in the Middle Bronze Age (radio carbon dates of 1700-1200 BC) and pre-Roman Iron Age. They also believe there may be the remnants of a barrow cemetery. The archaeologists also identified a section of Dere Street, a Roman road. Finally, there was evidence that the area was farmed in the 11th to 12th centuries and in the 13th to 14th centuries AD, a pattern reflected in other medieval settlement in the Lothians.[3]

Newbridge Chariot edit

The remains of an Iron Age chariot burial were found near the Bronze Age burial mound at Huly Hill, Newbridge, in advance of development at the Edinburgh Interchange. The chariot was the first of its kind to be found in Scotland.

Local amenities edit

Newbridge has an industrial estate, two car dealerships, a Royal Bank of Scotland branch, a pub with a large beer garden (the Newbridge Inn, founded in 1683),[4] a bowling club, a McDonald's restaurant, a petrol station, a Premier Inn (with Thyme restaurant), a cafe and a fish and chip shop. There is a Scotmid nearby at Ratho Station. Larger supermarkets can be found in Broxburn. A doctor's surgery and a chemist are located in Ratho.

Transport edit

Road edit

The Newbridge roundabout was built in 1970 as a flat roundabout serving the M8 Edinburgh to Glasgow motorway, the M9 Edinburgh to Stirling motorway, the A8 and the A89. One of the busiest roundabouts in Scotland, traffic congestion became intolerable and it was converted to a grade-separated roundabout interchange in 1997, becoming Junction 1 of the M9. The A8 (dual carriageway to Maybury junction only) runs from the Newbridge Roundabout into Edinburgh City Centre. The A89 road runs from Newbridge roundabout to Broxburn.

Bus edit

Newbridge is served by several bus services

McGill's Scotland East edit

  • 20 (Slateford - Kingsknowe - Wester Hailes - Edinburgh Park - Ratho Station - Ratho)
  • X24 (St. John's Hospital - Livingston - Fastlink - Broxburn - Edinburgh)
  • X38 (Falkirk - Linlithgow - Kirkliston - Edinburgh)
  • 63 (Balerno - Currie - Riccarton - Sighthill - Gyle Centre - Newbridge - Kirkliston - Queensferry)

Lothian Country Buses edit

  • X18 (Whitburn - Armadale - Bathgate - Dechmomt - Broxburn - Edinburgh)
  • N18 (Edinburgh - Broxburn - Dechmont - Bathgate - Armadale - Whitburn)(Night Service)

"Lothian Country". www.lothianbuses.com. Retrieved 26 August 2021.

Stagecoach East Scotland edit

  • X51 (Dunfermline Bus Station, Forth Road Bridge, Queensferry, Kirkliston, Livingston)

Air edit

Newbridge is about a mile from Edinburgh Airport's Terminal Building.

Tram edit

Newbridge will be the western terminus of Tram Line 2. [5]

Schools edit

Newbridge shares Hillwood Primary School with Ratho Station. Newbridge is in the catchment area for Craigmount High School.

Sources edit

  1. ^ "Mid-2020 Population Estimates for Settlements and Localities in Scotland". National Records of Scotland. 31 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  2. ^ "Ratho Station (City of Edinburgh)". Retrieved 21 June 2014.
  3. ^ "Vol 59 (2016): A Roman Road Runs Through It: Excavations at Newbridge, Edinburgh | Scottish Archaeological Internet Reports". journals.socantscot.org. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  4. ^ "Newbridge Village, Bridge Street, Newbridge Inn". Historic Environment Scotland. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  5. ^ "Route Maps & Stops". edinburghtrams.com. Retrieved 26 August 2021.