[Anonymous]

[AMcWhirter]

If you’re visiting Edinburgh on or after May 31 you will able to experience the city’s new but controversial tram system.

http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/news/article/1534/edinburgh_trams_go_live_31_may_2014

http://www.scotsman.com/news/transport/edinburgh-trams-to-launch-on-31-may-1-3396033

[Bath_VIP]

They certainly looked smart when I was walking around Edinburgh at Easter. A word of advice to visitors though; if you are a taking a taxi from Edinburgh airport to the city, whatever you do, DO NOT ASK the driver when are the trams due to start running! I made this mistake once and then had to suffer an unbroken rant about the whole thing for the entire journey in an incomprehensible Scottish accent!

[SergeantMajor]

At least it stops them ranting about everything else!

[pheighdough]

There has been some discussion recently on this forum regarding the premium price charged for taking the tram to the airport whereas all the other stations are significantly cheaper. So I wrote the following e-mail to the operator:

‘Why are your tickets to/from the airport so expensive when all other stops are significantly cheaper?’

I received the following response:

Thank you for your email enquiry regarding the ticket prices heading to the airport.

The tram ticket prices mirror the current Airlink 100 bus service, where a premium fare applies to the airport. Therefore the price of a single ticket to the airport from Gogarburn will be the same as it is from York Place.

I hope you find this information helpful.

Kind regards,

Alf Orriell

So now we know.

[canucklad]

Morning all

Well I’m afraid Mr Alf Orriell needs to understand the basics of the English language.. Unless he’s talking about a magic mirror, or those mirrors you get at funfairs.

Airlink 100 Single fare = £4 & £7 return

http://www.flybybus.com/

Trams + £5 & £8 return

http://edinburghtrams.com/tickets/cash-fares

Either way I’ll stick to getting the bus, and you don’t have to trundle your luggage, the Airlink leaves from outside the terminal, you’ve a wee bit longer of a hike to tram it.

[goalie11]

I travelled on the trams on day 1 and have to say that they are ok. It was a warm day, the carriages were packed and the AC wasn’t working properly.

The fares are a bit of a joke and to be honest if you are travelling to/from the airport your are not only cheaper by coach but also quicker as the trams are timetabled to take at least 5 mins longer.

Another fare anomaly is that those people who have the Scottish free travel passes only qualify for the concession if their pass was issued by Edinburgh Council, meaning all others have to pay. I feel a legal challenge coming on from some quarters.

[jjlasne]

Same thing with BART from the San Francisco Intl Airport to downtown San Francisco ($8.65). Flyers are gouged; still cheaper than any Heathrow or Gatwick Express although BART is no express.
http://www.bart.gov

[jjlasne]

1 billion pounds for 14kms of track? Bravo, Scotland!

[canucklad]

@ jjlasne

I sense a degree of sarcasm is your last comment and was going to start off with a daft comment about hyperbole, referring to your £1 billion point.
That was pre coffee break; I’m now going to give a more measured response. And still question your £1B figure. In reality it’s a lot higher than that. The original budget was based on a network being laid down to Leith and looping back into the city centre, so double the track at ½ the eventual cost!

God only knows what the final compensation figure would be if companies successfully sue for loss of revenue caused by the corruption, oops sorry , I meant disruption !!

The whole project as I’ve pointed out has turned into a national disgrace and I welcome Alex Salmond’s insistence on an enquiry.
And it’s a no brainer for him to do so; the only major party to come out of this fiasco relatively unscathed are the SNP.

Although I can summarise the findings in 3 simple points…..

1) Do not allow local politicians to have a major role in project management decision making. Especially when they link some of those decisions to party dogma, or allowing them to indulge in grandiose ego schemes.
2) Don’t hire a European Consortium with a contract that had more holes in it than an industrial colander. A consultant friend of mine told me that when the 3 companies that made up the consortium, read the contract, devised a plan to milk Edinburgh dry and had no real intention of completing the project.
3) Ensure that all the contractors actually communicate with each other and pay penalties or at the very least not paid for double work. Or was it the intention to create Edinburgh’s own tourist attraction at Haymarket, called “The Hole” .

To summarise, Edinburgh has the best run buses in the country, and didn’t need a Tram network, but if we were going to build it, get the Chinese in to do it! At least there would have been a degree of pride taken in the work done, and the stench of corruption that emanated from that hole in Haymarket wouldn’t have reeked so strongly.

Oh…I almost forgot the Bravo Scotland comment……..
3 little characters of warning to all down south…………….”HS2”

[Author]

Posts