Tram works on track to return to Princes Street

Published on Wednesday 13 January 2010 08:59

TRAM works are set to return to Princes Street from next week as the project gets under way again following a winter shutdown.

Two work sites will be created at the junction of South St Andrew Street as the next phase of the project begins.

Contractors are set to begin work between Waverley Bridge and St Andrew Square from next Monday, but while some traffic management measures will be needed to control traffic, Princes Street will not be closed.

Work will begin with some utility diversions, before contractors begin laying tram tracks.

From this weekend, all parking will be suspended on the south side of St Andrew Square, while South St Andrew Street will be closed at the junction with Princes Street from next week.

Susan Clark, deputy project director, Edinburgh Tram Project, said: "This weekend sees the start of further works in the city centre, where we will be working on telecoms diversions in St Andrew Square and Princes Street.

"These works are necessary prior to the next stage of track laying.

"This work will last until about the end of the month. We again thank the people of Edinburgh for their patience and understanding as we undertake these works."

Princes Street finally reopened in November after eight months of work to lay tracks between the Caledonian Hotel and Waverley Bridge.

The next major part of the project will now be work to prepare Shandwick Place for track laying.

Shandwick Place is expected to close to traffic from February until mid-2011, with traders expressing their disappointment that the schedule for the work has apparently slipped, after they were promised it would be completed by the end of 2010.

There is also uncertainty over whether the track laying work will even go ahead as planned, as that part of the route is understood to be affected by the disputes outstanding between tram firm TIE and its contractor.

Traffic diversions will also be in place around Haymarket for much of 2010 as work continues to construct a viaduct and tram stop.

Councillor Gordon Mackenzie, the city's transport convener, said: "The work on Princes Street won't involve a road closure, which is great news for retailers and those accessing the city centre.

"The tram tracks on Princes Street provide a real sense of what the completed network will look like and I am sure we are all looking forward to the works being completed along the route."

• www.edinburghtrams.com

• www.edinburgh.gov.uk