Just back from a week in Edinburgh and all the rails and overhead are in place. There was work being done on the York Place and Mound stops, but this was only a tidying up exercise.
Shandwick Place to Haymarket is scheduled to be re-opened to buses and taxis only from mid-October and then full tram route testing will commence.
I'm going back up in late January, so it will be interesting to see what is happening then!
Mal
Testing has been progressing up to Haymarket station and according to the local press the first tram will be running down Princes Street at 11pm tonight.
Mal
As some of you will know, there is an article on the Edinburgh tram route in this month's Tramway magazine. It could be a good far-sighted move that they are planning to retain all 27 trams after all.
Trams will start passenger service on Saturday 31. May 2014. The first will leave Gyle (shopping centre) at 05 00 for York Place with the (Scottish) Transport Minister and the Lord Provost of Edinburgh on board.
There is a full item in todays online Edinburgh Evening News.
Mal
I also read this opening date on the BBC (former Ceefax) news in the Edinburgh, Fife etc section. This means that the May opening date has been met, if only just! I look forward to visiting Edinburgh not just for the trams but also the electric trains to/from Manchester.
I rode a couple of trams in Edinburgh last Thursday, 31st July. They were nice and spacious, and had good leather seats. However, they did not seem heavily used, probably because most places are just as well served by bus, or Edinburgh Park by trains. The tramline does seem to me to have been a vanity project by previous Councillors who were voted out of office in 2007!
I was in Edinburgh this week and rode the whole of the tram system from York Place to the Airport. It appears well used to the Airport and Ingleston Park & Ride but very few passengers between Haymarket and Gogarburn.
(01/02/2014 22:34)Metroline1511 Wrote: [ -> ]As some of you will know, there is an article on the Edinburgh tram route in this month's Tramway magazine. It could be a good far-sighted move that they are planning to retain all 27 trams after all.
Doubt whether it was a far sighted move to purchase all 27 trams. They probably could not get out of the contract. I am not sure how they operate as only 10 are required for service with a number of spares. Are the rest just stored?