Over the past month or so we’ve heard lots from the Trams to Newhaven project with the programme of completion revised and then an unnamed source criticising the project and saying it wouldn’t manage to hit its deadline and now we can see some of the recent progress on the route of the extension from York Place to Newhaven. John Hampton recently took a trip and this pictorial update shows the results of his look at progress.
The track in Leith Walk is now connected to the track in Constitution Street (behind the photographer) and concreted in place. Traffic flows in single file across the new tracks between Duke Street to Great Junction Street.
The inbound curve from Ocean Drive to Ocean Way is now laid and awaits connection to the tracks in Ocean Way in the foreground. The outbound track was laid some weeks ago.
A little further towards Ocean Terminal, track is now in place past the Fingal hotel ship with the red facing of the Ocean Terminal shopping centre visible behind the ship.
The tracks are now complete over Tower bridge which spans the mouth of the Water of Leith and has required strengthening to carry the trams.
Looking from the other side of Tower bridge with the old girder swing bridge in the background. The swing bridge used to carry the dockyard railway trains over the Water of Leith but is now used for pedestrians only. (All Photographs by John Hampton, 7th August 2022)
Very impressive BUT given the plethora of adequate bus services to Newhaven (which are far cheaper), I can’t see it ever being anything near a financial success !
Big Alasdair
Bus and tram services are the same price within the city zone. £1.80. The tram currently offers a day return option at £3.40 which is 20p cheaper than two singles on any of the bus companies operating within the same zone. There is a larger mark up for the airport zone than the bus alternatives.
“Adequate”. That about sums up the attitude in this country to public transport from Beeching onwards, in fact back to the replacement in our cities of all trams (regardless of route traffic densities) with buses.
Doesn’t need to be world class, first class or just so attractive as to encourage people to leave the car at home. Just “adequate” for Begbie, Rents, Spud and Sickboy.
All that’s good about Lothian Buses derives purely from its public ownership. That can’t overcome the spine shattering experience of riding a bus which crashes from one road defect to another and jerks from one gear change to another. Without the qualitative improvements to the passenger experience that rail brings you can’t hope to attract more people to public transport. That applies as much to heavy rail solutions (such as the idea of reopening Portobello station) as to trams.