The council estimates that routing the tram over the Dean Bridge could cost double what it would take to build the new northern part of the tram extension on part of the old railway line.
A consultation opens today on the two possible routes to extend the tram from Roseburn to Granton either using the Orchard Brae corridor which is on-road, or the Roseburn Path, which is a segregated off-road path. The tramline to the north will complete the £2 billion plus project to join the north and south of the city with a southern link from Princes Street to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.
The estimate at this initial stage is that the whole new route will cost from £2 billion to £2.9 billion depending on which option between Granton and the city centre is chosen. Granton is being developed as a low car and sustainable development area and current plans suggest the tram will use a route including West Harbour Road, Waterfront Avenue and West Granton Access. Tram stops would potentially be installed at Granton Square, Saltire Square, Caroline Park and West Pilton.
When the full route is open then it is estimated that passenger numbers will increase on the network from 12.1 million passengers at present to 34 million by 2032. Edinburgh’s population will increase from 523,000 to 564,000 in the same period.
Orchard Brae route
The first option would build the line from the West End along Queensferry Street, over the Dean Bridge using Queensferry Road and then north down Orchard Brae. The Dean Bridge was constructed over two years in the middle of the 19th century, and remains the only way for pedestrians and vehicles – including buses – to cross the deep ravine underneath.
The council says it is unlikely there would be separate space for cycle ways and so existing cycling lanes on Crewe Road South, Queensferry Road and Queensferry Street would have to be removed. Cyclists would have to share the space with other vehicles, including the tram. But one advantage would be that the Western General would have better access from the tram as the track could pass closer to the building.
Journey times on the Orchard Brae corridor would be longer due to other vehicles being on the road, and this would also add to the cost of running the service. Bus service times could be affected. The service could be battery operated between Queensferry Road and Princes Street if needed to minimise the visual impact of the tram.
A potential challenge on this route includes accommodating a left hand turn at the top of Orchard Brae, and the impact on the UNESCO World Heritage Site and Dean Village Conservation Area would be a consideration. There would however be two tracks for the length of the tramline.
The cost is estimated at between £650-850 million. The tram would carry 3.75 million passengers by 2042.
Roseburn Path route
The alternative using the Roseburn Path connects to the line west of Haymarket at a spur point on Russell Road already created there for the purpose, over the former railway line from Roseburn to Craigleith, and then to Ferry Road and Crewe Toll arriving in Granton. the model shows that this option will cut the journey time by eight minutes at peak times in the morning.
While the transport convener was careful not to favour one option over the other he said that he was pleased that matters of safety on the Roseburn Path have been addressed in this exercise. He said: “There would be an active travel corridor alongside. At the moment that is not somewhere you would be able to travel in the evening because it is dark. It would be much safer going forward, much more secure having a proper active travel route alongside the tram which is safe and secure. We were asked to do that and I am quite pleased we have managed to achieve that. I think the whole point is enhancing what is there rather than just having a tram line.”
The Roseburn Path route would incorporate a dedicated walking, wheeling and cycling corridor in the design – completely separate from tram tracks. On most of the path the minimum width available for active travel will be three metres – the same as it is at present and at some points it would widen out to 4.2 metres.
The active travel path would be separated by fencing and would have a buffer zone of 0.5 metres to 1.9 metres.
There are however two points at which the active travel path is narrower than three metres – at Telford Road Bridge and the south side of Roseburn Bridge to Russell Road where it will be 2.1 metres for a distance of 12 metres. At the second at Roseburn Bridge, alternative routes will be provided via Balbirnie Place and also a new green space at the old Murrayfield Station. These would connect to the City Centre West to East Link (CCWEL) at Roseburn (although the option to use the Roseburn Path remains).
A section of single tram track is proposed between Craigleith and Roseburn tram stops to make more space for walking, wheeling and cycling and to reduce ecological impact. This route would incorporate improvements to cycling routes on Crewe Road South, Queensferry Road and Queensferry Street. A new cycling option from Crewe Toll to Roseburn and Murrayfield is also included in the design.
The council’s professional ecologists estimate that there are 3,100 trees along this route, and that around three quarters of them can be retained. This is based on a 2005 topographical survey which was a landscape and visual assessment and was followed by a desktop exercise. As part of the Roseburn Path route would be single track this mitigates the need to remove as many trees as some may have previously thought, so the council say around 70% of the trees can be retained.
It is believed that apart from the tram project Ash Dieback and other factors will mean that around 25% of the trees now require professional attention or removal. Council officers also mentioned Japanese Knotweed which will require eradication.
The tram service could also be battery operated along the Roseburn Path to minimise ecological damage, and additional green spaces will be created along the route.
The bridges on the route (there is one for example over the main A8 at Wester Coates) were constructed for heavy rail and it is believed they will be suitable for trams.
The cost is estimated at £350 million to £480 million, and the tram is forecast to carry 4.25 million passengers on the route by 2042.
Disruption
Disruption to other traffic during the build would be kept to a minimum if the Roseburn Path is chosen since it is off road. If the Orchard Brae route is chosen then the danger is that digging up roads will uncover utilities which were not mapped and would need to be placed deeper in the ground under the line – so adding to the cost. This was one of the difficulties encountered on Leith Walk.
City Mobility Plan
The City Mobility Plan highlights these key challenges in the city: climate change, declining biodiversity, population growth, poverty, inequality, improving safety and health and wellbeing and says that “Now is the time for bolder, more transformational action. Edinburgh has an ambitious agenda for change.”
The city’s Transport Convener, Cllr Stephen Jenkinson, said that a tram extension will answer many of the challenges. He said: “Tram actually answers a number of those questions in the way of being able to rapidly move people around, around the city. If we can reduce the number of of car kilometres travelled, if we can encourage modal shift, and get people out of their own vehicles into more kind of sustainable modes of transport, then that will really go a long way to helping us reduce our net zero carbon targets and our global targets that we have advertised as a city.”
An estimate from SEStran, the South East Scotland regional transport partnership, has estimated that around 20 million visits are made to hospitals and healthcare services in the city region each year, so to take the tram network to the hospitals is key. Edinburgh Trams carries more than 12 million passengers each year while working closely with Lothian Buses and other bus operators.
Other uses of the tram – such as carrying freight – are also being examined in the council proposals.
Tram train
The consultation which opens on Monday 25 August is an opportunity for everyone to have their say on the development of the tram line into a network heading both north and south across the city. The southern part could open the way for extensions into the areas beyond the city boundary.
Just as the consultation was announced, a new campaign group has emerged which aims to promote the work of a group of Heriot Watt engineering students earlier in the year to use a tram train in the southern part of the city, partly on roads and partly on existing train lines, creating a new loop – which might even result in demand for a new mainline railway station in Portobello. Read more about the new tram train group here.
The council have already addressed this possibility. A council spokesperson said: “Along with Network Rail, we are keen to explore a ‘tram-train’ (a light rail vehicle that can operate on tram and rail tracks) concept with the potential to reintroduce passenger services on the Edinburgh South Suburban Railway. Additional direct access to Edinburgh Airport would become a possiblility and a new connection between Balgreen and Murrayfield in the west and Brunstane of Newcraighall in the east.
“The Edinburgh South Suburban Railway could serve both Niddrie and Fort Kinnaird, although it does not directly connect with Edinburgh BioQuarter or Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and so is not an alternative to the North-South tram route concept.”
Consultation
Cllr Jenkinson, is clear that the consultation is not a referendum. The decision to extend the tram is going ahead, “it has been talked about for many years. It does form part of many national and regional city strategies”. The consultation is one part of the statutory process. It will form part of a strategic business case after which the council can start the conversation about finding the money to fund the build. So Cllr Jenkinson admitted that the council is “still at the development part of this project”, but he is clear that this is part of a solution to problems in the city which will “benefit the city for generations to come” and it is important to get it right. He said that the funding will be considered at the next stage.
He said that there is a common misconception that consultations are a place for members of the public to state their view and that the council will then change course. He said: “that is not really the purpose of the process. The purpose is to gather people’s thoughts positive, negative and neutral to help finesse the project going forward. This is not a referendum on whether or not we have the tram. What we are trying to do is develop the future in Edinburgh.”
Support for the North South Extension
The council plans to extend the route from around Roseburn to Granton in the north and from the city centre to Edinburgh Bioquarter and the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh in the south. A 2023 survey conducted by the council showed that 65% of respondents wanted the tram network extended, and 83% want general improvements made to the city’s pubic transport.
The proposal is to extend the tramline to the Bioquarter using Princes Street, North Bridge, South Bridge, Clerk Street, Newington Road, Cameron Toll and Old Dalkeith Road to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh. Again battery operated trams would be used to minimise disruption on city centre streets up to Newington. A new junction at Princes Street and South St Andrew Street would connect to the southern part of the network. A new tram stop on North Bridge will link into Waverley Station by means of a lift improving access for those with reduced mobility. There would also be a connection to buses from here – perhaps the busiest stop on the network. Pavements on North and South Bridge will be widened and this would be a public transport corridor. Segregated cycle lanes will be installed on adjacent streets, and some existing may be moved onto side streets as part of the tram project.
After moving through Cameron Toll roundabout the tram would be largely on street, and so any threat of felling trees around Bridgend Farm is removed.
Emergencies
The current line from Edinburgh Airport to Newhaven carries around a million passengers a month, and in order to build the next part of the line, the council must produce a strategic business case for both parts of the proposed extension. This will be presented to the council in spring 2026. The tram extension would remove traffic from the roads which are already congested and the council says the congestion is an acknowledged barrier to growing the city’s economy and jobs.
The council has declared a housing emergency and by building an extension to the tram line the council says it will “play a role in accelerating the development of much-needed housing that is well connected to the city, jobs and facilities.”
Cllr Jenkinson said that the consultation will be a “fully fleshed out piece of work. It should be pretty clear to people what the vision is and what problems we’re trying to solve. It should be fairly clear that we have listened to the feedback that we had in February last year and what other route could be possible.”
He explained that some of the credit for the fact there will be an active travel route provided along the Roseburn corridor must be given to the Save the Roseburn Path campaign.
Cllr Jenkinson continued: “I spoke to a representative from the Save the Roseburn Path campaign recently, and it is fair to say that to give them credit they have challenged the council to come up with alternative solutions. Their campaign has helped us focus on some of the concerns they have highlighted.
“I’m pleased that we’ve reached this key stage for extending our multi award-winning tram service.
“We need to prepare for the future. Edinburgh is the fastest growing city in Scotland, with more than 60,000 new residents expected over the next 20 years. Whilst this shift is a true sign of our success, it brings real pressure on our communities, and crucially on the city’s transport infrastructure on which we all rely.
“Managing this growth also means tackling the climate, nature and housing emergencies. To meet these significant challenges, we need to look for bold and ambitious solutions and the tram extension is central to this.
“Edinburgh Trams already offers a reliable and fast service, allowing residents and visitors to move around sustainably and efficiently, and with some of the cheapest fares in the country. The broader benefits of cleaner air and emphasis on active travel surrounding the network are equally as important.
“Our overarching vision is to truly link our city for the benefit of all. From our flagship £1.3bn development at Granton Waterfront through to the city centre, our world-famous universities, cultural hubs, brilliant local businesses, new housing developments, hospitals and beyond; our transport network must move with the times.
“The new developments we will see along the tram route will be key to Edinburgh’s prosperity for generations to come.
“I’d encourage everyone to engage with this consultation and help to shape the next chapter in the history of Edinburgh’s transport.”
Residents can give their views from today (25 August) until 17 November online on the council’s Consultation Hub or at in person drop-in sessions. Details of these sessions are also on the Consultation Hub.
The next stage of development, as set out by Transport Scotland, is the Outline Business Case when more detail will be added to the proposals.
The consultation is now live here.
