TIE still to buy tenth of land for tram line

Published on Tuesday 1 March 2011 10:08

TRAM bosses have yet to tie up deals for around a tenth of the land needed to build the airport to Newhaven line, it has emerged.

Figures released by TIE under Freedom of Information laws show the tram firm has yet to acquire land from West Craigs Limited and the Royal Bank of Scotland in the west of the city and from Forth Ports in the north.

The total area, which adds up to more than 60,000 sq metres, accounts for more than nine per cent of the land needed for line 1a. However, it now looks increasingly unlikely that the full line will be built all at once, with TIE hoping to open the 11.5-mile route "incrementally", beginning with the airport to St Andrew Square section.

A spokesman for TIE said: "Agreements are in place with the landowners that the sale of land will be done post-construction so that we avoid the unnecessary purchase of more land than is actually required."