Edinburgh is a tremendously impressive City. Its road are flecked with granite chips which make the surfaces resolute and durable, its road system in the centre is laid out in a grid , with the Royal Mile linking the castle to Holyroyd House. Alleyways and paths wind between shops and bars, and the natives scurry about like ants on a rose bush.
It is rather sad, therefore, to witness the devastation which is surrounding the construction of the new tram system.
Many cities have embraced the idea of introducing trams as a fast and convenient mode of transport. Croydon was a building site for years as they struggled to join the high society of Wimbledon Village with the rather less appealing New Addington council estate, via the city centre, Purley and Merton. In their case, however, there was no heritage to protect. Manchester managed to integrate their system with little or no change to the architecture and tradition of the City, and it has been a huge success.
Edinburgh, however, is suffering. The aforementioned roads are being dug up because all the main services run down the centre of the road, and this is where the tram lines are to go. Consequently the services are being moved to the kerb side, roads are being blocked off or made one-way, and worst of all ,a number of old traditional buildings, pubs, houses and so on, are being demolished.
They are only building one line at present. It will run from Leith in the North to the airport, via Princes Street and Haymarket where it will follow the railway lines. There are already worries though that the funding will run out and the tram line will terminal at Gogarburn, about a mile short......
Still when its built they will be able to illuminate the trams at Christmas like they do in Blackpool, and I can't wait until the rugger chaps at Murrayfield see how many people they can have hanging off the side.
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