The Edinburgh Tram is, in many ways, a local legend before you ever get on it – and not entirely for the right reasons. The project was a procurement disaster of almost parodic scale: years of delay, spiralling costs, court cases, a parliamentary inquiry, and a final bill somewhere north of £776 million for what was originally promised as a cross-city network. What actually opened in 2014 was a single line from the airport to York Place – essentially half a route at three times the cost.
But here’s the thing: the tram is actually quite good now. And in 2023, the Newhaven extension opened, finally completing the line down through Leith to the waterfront. It’s still just one line. But it’s a useful one.
Line 1 – The Route
The tram runs from Edinburgh Airport all the way to Newhaven on the Leith waterfront. Key stops in order from the airport:
- Ingliston Park & Ride – free parking, connect here if driving in from the west
- Edinburgh Gateway – interchange with ScotRail services on the Fife/north Edinburgh lines
- Haymarket – major interchange with trains and buses, west end of Princes Street
- West End – Princes Street – top of the West End, shops and George Street
- Princes Street – dead centre of the city, closest to the Old Town and Waverley
- St Andrew Square – New Town, Harvey Nichols, bus connections east
- York Place – edge of the New Town, Picardy Place
- Picardy Place – Leith Walk top, Omni Centre, new Broughton Street area
- McDonald Road – Broughton residential
- Balfour Street – Pilrig area
- Foot of the Walk – top of Leith Walk proper
- Leith Walk – mid-Leith Walk
- Halmyre Street – deeper into Leith
- Junction Street / Duke Street – Leith centre
- The Shore – Leith waterfront, the best pubs and restaurants in the city
- Ocean Terminal – Britannia, shopping centre, Leith docks
- Newhaven – the end of the line, Newhaven harbour
Fares and Tickets
Within the city centre zone (Haymarket to St Andrew Square), a single is £1.80. Airport to city centre is £8.50 single, £16 return. Full journey airport to Newhaven is around £8.50 as everything in between is included. Lothian integrated day tickets (£4.50) cover both trams and buses within the city – the best value for a day in Edinburgh. Contactless payment is accepted on platforms from machines; there are no conductors on the tram.
Frequency and Hours
Trams run every 7-10 minutes during peak hours, every 12-15 minutes evenings and Sundays. First tram is around 6am from each end. Last trams are around midnight. The tram does not run all night – for late-night returns from the airport, the Airlink 100 bus is the 24-hour alternative.
Practical Notes
The trams have level boarding, making them excellent for bikes, prams and wheelchairs. Bikes are carried free at non-peak times. The vehicles are modern and clean. Mobile signal is fine along most of the route. The Shore and Newhaven stops have brought a genuine uplift to those areas – property values along the Leith extension have risen noticeably since the extension opened.
Corrections
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