If you’ve ever lived in Edinburgh, you’re probably familiar with the city’s loooong tram saga. But this week, locals can breathe a sigh of relief as the route from the city centre down to the port of Leith finally opens.
The route starts at York Place and terminates at Newhaven, stretching for 2.91 miles down Leith Walk. The whole thing opens tomorrow (Wednesday, June 5). Construction has been going on for four years and has cost £207.3 million in total.
Trams were first recommended for the city all the way back in 2001, work began in 2007 and the service started running from Edinburgh Airport to York Place in 2014, three years behind the original schedule. An inquiry was commissioned the same year but is still yet to be published.
While the building of the new tramline caused disruption to local businesses, it is hoped that it will spark new life for Leith, which has long been branded the capital’s most ‘up and coming’ area. It has even been compared to Barcelona’s Las Ramblas, the lively street that links the Spanish city to the coast.
Vic Galloway, a resident and BBC radio host, told The Guardian: ‘The pavement has already been widened and it’s becoming a bustling boulevard that soars down to the sea. This is now the place to go out in Edinburgh.’
However, some locals have expressed a little more apprehension, with one café owner telling The Times that she’s ‘a little scared we won’t be able to cope’ with the increased footfall.
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