Making tracks towards tram work completion
Work will be under way along every section of the tram route from January
THE hidden jumble of water pipes, gas pipes and electric cables running beneath Edinburgh’s streets have been a constant stumbling block for the Capital’s tram project.
Unexpected delays and increasing costs have been the result so the news that there are still more utility pipes to move surely means more delays and more cost rises.
Not, however, if the council’s latest secret weapon is reliable.
Radar-scanning of city streets means that hopefully there will be no repeat of the previous chaos where up to 80 per cent of the information on the location of pipes and cables proved to be inaccurate.
City development director Dave Anderson said the project management now had an “X-ray” picture of the situation around Shandwick Place – said to be the worst location for these “conflicts” – to help pinpoint problem areas.
He said: “We’ve carried out radar scanning and dug slit trenches along the route. We now have a very good understanding of exactly what is down there.”
He said the £776 million trams budget included a substantial “risk reserve” to cover unforeseen problems.
He said that those in charge of the project were confident the trams would be up and running by the summer of 2014.
The next phase of work on the project gets under way in the new year. Work on moving the utility pipes and cables will start a month ahead of the main construction work.
The workmen dealing with the utilities will try to keep 20 or 30 metres ahead of the contractors carrying out the main work.
Workmen will be back on Princes Street on January 3, putting up fencing ready for construction work re-starting on January 9.
The drive to press ahead with completing the route from Haymarket to St Andrew Square will mean the closure of Shandwick Place and North and South St Andrew Street early in the new year, with a series of diversions for buses and motorists.
People are being warned to allow an extra ten minutes for their journeys through the city centre.
The council said pedestrian access to all areas would be maintained, with crossing points created where necessary, and clear signage in place for drivers, cyclists and pedestrians.
Work will start in the St Andrew Square area on Saturday, January 7. The east side of the square, including North and South St Andrew Street, will be closed to vehicles and all traffic will be switched to the west side.
The work site will extend down on to Princes Street and west as far as Waverley Bridge. There will still be access to shops and premises, while additional support will be put in place for business deliveries.
Work is due to be completed by the end of 2012.
Buses which would normally run along Princes Street will continue to be diverted along George Street.
A narrowed roadway on Princes Street near Waverley Bridge – to accommodate track-laying and construction work going on at Princes Mall to install a lift to Waverley station – will mean traffic lights allowing only one bus at a time to pass.
The east side of Charlotte Square is to revert to two-way traffic, with the west side becoming access only.
At Shandwick Place, work begins on Saturday, January 14, with Shandwick Place closed to all traffic between Atholl Crescent and Lothian Road.
Traffic will be diverted to either Melville Street for eastbound traffic or the West Approach Road for westbound traffic.
Work is due to be completed by spring 2013.
Letters are being sent to residents and businesses informing them of the planned works and officials are having face-to-face meetings with traders to help with any access problems.
Mr Anderson said: “We are now moving forward with the project and, from January, work on all sections of the route, from the airport to St Andrew Square, will be under way.
“Although this latest programme of works will last throughout 2012, it is important to understand that the project has now reached a critical stage and that we need to push ahead with required work as efficiently as possible.
“We would like to thank the people of Edinburgh for their continued patience throughout this process and reassure them that project is on track to be completed within our current timescale.”
Transport convener Gordon Mackenzie added: “We have been working closely with city centre businesses to minimise the impact on trade during the course of the works, committing close to £1m to our business support scheme over the next two years.
“With the support of our partners and stakeholders, and thanks to the cooperation of the public, the city has adapted well in the past to similar changes in traffic management and we are confident that, once the arrangements bed in, they will enable us to keep Edinburgh moving for the duration of the works.”
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Comments
There are 16 comments to this article
Page 1 of 2
Richard Lionheart
Wednesday, November 30, 2011 at 10:54 PM#15 Raises a very good point. With Council elections just around the corner voters should be letting their prospective candidates know that they will not vote for anyone who would consider extending the tram line!
cynicalm
Wednesday, November 30, 2011 at 12:14 AMNever mind. when the trams start running in 201*(*=4-9 depending on your optimism) the whole city will be revitalised and the citizens will realise the benefit. After that there will be renewed pressure for the extension of the system to Port Seton, Haddington, and perhaps even Leith.
Hazelkaye
Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at 07:06 PMSorry - that should have read "retrograde work now afflicting Edinburgh"!
Hazelkaye
Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at 07:05 PMManchester, Sheffield. Nottingham, Croydon and Dublin (etc) all managed to sort out the 'jumble' of pipes and cables beneath their city streets, without having to resort to retrograde work now inflicting Edinburgh!
gus1940
Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at 05:53 PMIt may have escaped the council's notice but N. St. Andrew St. has been closed for at least the last 3 years.
Jams
Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at 05:10 PMROFLMAO - Yes Comical Ali indeed. If it was all so simple and straightforward why did they not do that in the first place????? How much did they spend on surveys and "specialist" advice before they even lifted a shovel ??? I am guessing millions - meanwhile the council, well they are still just guessing.
Duncan in Edinburghs Fluffer
Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at 04:46 PMGordon McKenzie..........the Comical Ali of EEC. Still at it I see. Makes you want to weep.
WOTTPI
Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at 02:30 PMWhy is there no decent investigative jounrnalism??? The identification oif utilities were the responsibility of the Design Consultants Parsons Brinkerhoff under the Systems Desing Services Contract so they could design the route taking uinot account all the utilities and required diversions. They sub contracted the work to Adien who according to their website undertake the same type of radar dection describeed in the story above. "Nobody puts out as much equipment and as many staff on a job as we do" http:www.adien.comabout_usaboutus.html ----- http:www.adien.comnewstramproject.html----- The question is therefore was the original work done by Aiden adequate? If not they why are they and Parsons not being chased for poor performance? If it was adequate and problems were reported to the client then who at tie ignored the information provided?
Pedro de Orgiva
Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at 01:42 PMEdinburgh International Business Gateway? None of you seem to get it. The trams are essential for this job creating multi-million pound investment to go ahead.at Ingliston
Alternative (High Octane) Fuel Head
Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at 01:18 PMThis insanity has to be stopped now. This is no more going to come in within budget and time now than it ever was. Scrap it now!
GraemeH
Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at 01:05 PMIt should be noted that all of the utility diversion work was stated as already being completed - the outstanding % was supposed to be in a few areas in Leith where advance works had not taken place. I note also the stories about how they need to run trams into York Place for a turn back. That is yet another blatant falsehood - there was nothing to stop the truncated tram finishing in Princes Street and turning back there or even on St Andrews Sq itself. Given the massive engineering works needed to raise York Place and the disruption caused to allow trams to operate and turn back it is another example of the contempt our failed politicians and council officials hold of the electore. I just hope that the SNP Turncoats are proud to be associated with this failure.
beeuuem
Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at 12:56 PMI received the notification about the works in Shandwick Place this morning. Apparently it is open ended, we get a start date but the end date is 'spring 2013'. Over 12 months for a very short stretch of roadway that has already been closed for months in past years. The mismanagement of a relatively straightforward project really is beyond belief.
The Diplomat
Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at 12:45 PMMr Anderson says"We would like to thank the people of Edinburgh for their continued patience throughout this process and reassure them that project is on track to be completed within our current timescale.” Eh? What fn option did they have? Stone me! It's Groundhog Day" - again! l Looks like he's digging out some of Mandy's old propaganda - anytime now we will get "on time, under budget",
Afredo Garcia
Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at 12:40 PMWhy did they not do a survey with this equipment before the damned shambles started? Did none of the highly paid planners, experts, consultants ever watch the TV archeology shows to see how it has been in common useage for decades?
keyser soze
Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at 12:30 PMThe radar scanner should be used on our councillors and council officials, to see exactly what is in there head, where a brain should be. That would show how good this machine is.
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