Beginning 19 March, the City of Edinburgh Council will undertake six weeks of public consultation and engagement on taking Edinburgh Trams to Newhaven.

This will provide the public, local business and stakeholders with general information on the project, specific details around traffic management during construction and the proposed permanent design. We will also outline our current proposals on how we aim to support local business during the construction period.

During consultation your views will be sought on traffic management and phasing. This includes proposals for the closure of Leith Walk to all northbound traffic, with a single city-bound lane remaining open and the phased closure and reopening of Constitution Street. Work in these areas is expected to last for up to 18 months.

These and wider plans for traffic management during construction have been drawn up following in-depth traffic modelling and discussions with key partners and stakeholders.

We also intend to communicate our plans to help support local businesses who will be most affected by the works. This includes provision for parking and loading between work sites, an open for business campaign, on-street customer service staff, logistics hubs and financial support.
Your opinions will also be sought on the plans for the permanent design of the street along the route. This includes a dedicated public transport-only lane on Leith Walk for tram and bus during the morning and evening rush hour. During off peak time the outside lanes will close to traffic and provide essential parking and loading areas for local business.

This is the first stage in a consultation process that is scheduled to continue through to the end of 2018.

Consultation 1 Begins: 19 March 2018

• 28,000 letters delivered to residential addresses in the area surrounding the planned tram route
• 4 public information events:

• Thursday 2 March: Leith Theatre, 11am – 6pm
• Tuesday 3 April: McDonald Road Library, 10am – 4pm
• Thursday 12 April: Leith Community Education Centre, 3pm – 9pm
• Saturday 21 April: Ocean Terminal, 12 noon – 5pm

• 4 local business forums
• 4 community council briefings
• Online feedback via Consultation Hub from 19 March
• A dedicated Trams to Newhaven website to keep you up-to-date

Consultation 1 Ends: 29 April 2018

As part of our consultation the project team commissioned an independent survey to understand local behaviours and attitudes towards Trams to Newhaven. The research was carried out by Progressive Partnership – an Edinburgh-based market research company. This involved a ten-minute on-street interview carried out with representative sample of 368 individuals at three locations along the proposed route.

Below are some of the key findings:

• 59% agreed that the line would benefit Leith with 58% saying it would be easier to get around and 42% saying it would be good for local business
• 91% were satisfied with current transport provision on Leith Walk
• When asked what would improve public transport provision in Leith Walk, the most popular response at 38% was ‘introduce a tram service’ NB most respondents currently used buses or walking to get to and around Leith
• 56% said they were likely to use the new line
• Among those who did not think Leith would benefit, concerns focused chiefly on disruption, delays and congestion resulting from construction works

If you have any further queries, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Trams to Newhaven Project Team