Man taken from city centre bridge

Part of Edinburgh's Waverley Station was closed

A man has been taken to safety after spending almost 48 hours on the ledge of a busy city centre bridge.

North Bridge in Edinburgh was first closed to traffic and pedestrians between Princes Street and High Street at about 0730 BST on Saturday.

Police officers spent the weekend trying to resolve the situation.

The fire brigade said the man was taken off the bridge shortly after 0600 on Monday after he fell asleep. He was taken to hospital for observation.

Harness used

Two specialist officers from the fire service went over the parapet onto the ledge and managed to put a harness on the man.

A police spokesman said: "I cannot praise too highly their skills or those of the other staff who maintained their efforts throughout the whole of this period."

The incident caused major traffic disruption in the capital, leaving lengthy tailbacks along Leith Walk, Market Street and the Royal Mile.

Platforms 20 and 21 at nearby Waverley Station were taped off and trains were re-routed.