Friday September 4th 2026
There are a network of lanes throughout Glasgow. A councillor is hoping to make them safer
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Drew Sandelands
Glasgow’s “neglected” private lanes should be revamped to help women and girls feel safer when moving around the city, a councillor has said.
Bailie Paul McCabe, SNP, wants high-risk locations to be identified and addressed, as poorly lit, enclosed lanes can make people feel vulnerable.
There have been multiple reports of sexual assaults carried out in city centre lanes — and calls have previously been made for more lighting to improve safety.
Many lanes have multiple private owners which often makes it difficult to agree on responsibility for maintenance and investment.
Bailie McCabe, who chairs the Safe Glasgow Partnership, believes problem lanes can be turned into city assets, with well-maintained spaces boosting local businesses and helping people to feel safe.
He is calling for a coordinated approach, involving planning, cleansing, community safety, policing and economic development.
Bailie McCabe hopes to ask councillors to back his plan for a ‘lanes action framework’ to be developed — to identify the areas most in need of intervention — with a motion to a full council meeting next week.
“This isn’t about simply tidying up Glasgow’s lanes,” he said. “It’s about making sure people, particularly women and girls, feel safe and confident moving around their own city.
“Where neglected lanes are creating safety problems, we need to identify them, target investment and bring the council, Police Scotland, communities, businesses and landowners together to fix them.”
A combination of good design, maintenance, lighting, community involvement, responsible ownership and appropriate enforcement are required, the councillor believes.
His motion would also ask the Scottish Government to consider whether legislation could simplify ownership/factoring arrangements for these lanes.
“First, we need to know where the biggest problems are,” Bailie McCabe said.
“Then we need to establish who is responsible for each lane and what powers and resources are available to deal with them.
“Finally, we need a coordinated plan to deliver improvements, rather than relying on individual owners to try to resolve complex problems themselves.”
Glasgow City Council previously developed a ‘private lane toolkit’ and provided a £700,000 fund to help residents and owners to improve the quality of these shared spaces.
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