The Union Canal was built from 1817 to 1882 linking the city of Edinburgh with the Forth and Clyde canal at Falkirk. In its heyday there were a number of basins close to Lothian Road where coal and building materials were offloaded for the fast growing city; hides were taken back to the tanneries in Linlithgow and Falkirk. Passenger travelled the route too. Walkers and cyclists can travel the full length of the canal from Edinburgh to Falkirk