‘Ghost’ trams to begin testing new route to Leith and Newhaven

‘Ghost’ trams will tonight begin running up and down Leith Walk in Edinburgh to test out the brand-new extension to the network before its official opening.

As part of the first stage of testing and commissioning, empty trams will drive at walking pace along small sections of the new route during evening and night shifts to minimise disruption to traffic. Official marshals will be in place to ensure the trials go to plan.

The tests are expected to start from about 8pm from Picardy Place. The first stage of testing and commissioning is set to run until Friday.

Tests along the 2.91-mile extension are designed to make sure the newly constructed line, software and signals work effectively and safely ahead of the planned launch date this summer.

The £207 million tram line extension was previously said to be on schedule to open by “spring 2023", but is now expected to be operating from June 21.

The Scottish capital’s new tram line officially opened on May 31, 2014, with the 8.4-mile route running between York Place in the city centre and Edinburgh Airport.

The extension, which will add a further eight stops, will allow passengers to travel to Leith and Newhaven

Work on the extension began in November 2019. Now the final part of the operation is under way, with regular services due to start this spring.

Empty trams will run on the newly constructed extensions from York Place to Newhaven for the first time to test out the line, travelling at walking pace in the initial stages of the trial -- most of the test journeys will take place in the evenings and at night to minimise disruption to traffic

The trials are being carried out to ensure the newly constructed line, software and signals work effectively and operate safely and will be done in stages.

Edinburgh’s original tram line was in operation from 1871 to 1956. It began with horse-drawn vehicles, guided by rails, before moving onto a cable-hauled mechanism.

Electric traction was introduced in 1905, the first of its kind in Scotland.

The modern Edinburgh Tram project has been dogged by controversy. The inaugural section had an initial estimated outlay of £375 million in 2003, but by May 2008, when contracts were signed, the price had risen to £521 million.

The final cost after delays was around £776m.

The cost of the Trams to Newhaven leg of the route was initially estimated at £144.7m, but the figure has since risen to £207.3m – partly due to a large increase in the cost of building supplies as a result of the pandemic.