Key thoroughfare could be cut to one lane for tram extension
One of Edinburgh’ s key thorough fares would be cut down to just one lane for 18 months if work to extend the city’ s tram line to Newhaven goes ahead, it has been revealed.
The closure of three lanes on Leith Walk would begin when construction on the £ 165.2 million project – if approved – gets under way in 2019.
It follows the publication of a fresh business case setting out the cost, impact and likely time scales of extending the existing line 2.9 miles to its Newhaven end point.
Council chiefs yesterday insisted that pushing ahead with the project would not prevent them from learning lessons from the upcoming tram inquiry, due to start next week. Council leader Adam Mcvey said the updated plans were “robust” and would help with ongoing regeneration in Leith.
He said: “The city can’t wait. By 2021 our employment numbers will grow by seven per cent – seven per cent more people wantto get to their work every day. We can’t postpone this indefinitely.
“If we had afirm commitment in term sofa timeline that pushed us back a matter of weeks or two months then we can have a conversation about that but we can’t sit idle while we wait on an indefinite, undefined timescale to complete.”