THE leader of council in Glasgow has said her administration has ambitions for a 'permanent shift' towards car free days in the city. 

SNP councillor Susan Aitken responded to a post on Twitter which asked whether it was 'time for 'George Square and more of our city centre to be car free'.

In response, Ms Aitken said that a number of events had already been held in communities closing roads, but hinted that more ambitious projects could be in the pipeline across the city. 

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She wrote: "We’ve had traffic free days in communities across the city for a couple of years now, next one coming up soon and George Square was traffic free again just a couple of weekends ago.

"But our ambitions are for a more permanent shift and work’s taking place on that now."

The conversation came about after roads in the centre of Edinburgh closed to traffic for the first time as the city joined the worldwide Open Streets movement to reduce air pollution.

Pedestrians and cyclists were able to enjoy exploring the historic Old Town which was shut to motorised vehicles between midday and 5pm on Sunday.

The City of Edinburgh Council said it is the first city in the UK to join the Open Streets movement, with the closure set to take place on the first Sunday of every month. 

A group calling themselves the New Glasgow Society had said: "Let's not have Glasgow being shown up by our neighbour along the M8."

After the SNP politician indicated plans for the city centre to become freer of vehicles, the group replied: "Looking forward to the outcome of that work, hope it’s as ambitious as the Connectivity Commission!

"George Square showed its real potential to be the car free heart of the city during the cycling event last weekend. Sure all Glaswegians would appreciate its transformation!"

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The statement by Glasgow's council leader has been welcomed on social media. 

Friends of the Earth Scotland's air pollution campaigner Gavin Thomson wrote: "This is great to hear."

Meanwhile, equal pay lawyer Mark Irvine added: "A traffic free George Square is the only way to make best use of the available space - as a lively market in the run up to Christmas, for example."

Read more of today's top Glasgow stories.