Edinburgh North-South tramline: Council leaders seek talks soon with other parties to secure support for new line
Edinburgh council's minority Labour administration is expected to seek talks with other parties over the next few weeks in a bid to secure support for the proposed new North-South tramline from Granton to the Royal Infirmary and beyond.
Officials are still analysing the 11,000-plus responses to the public consultation on the plans and any decision on going ahead with the project is not expected until June at the earliest.
It is not yet clear exactly what stance all the parties on the council will take, though the Labour administration is keen to see the new line built.
Transport convener Stephen Jenkinson said: "The evidence is clear that Edinburgh is a growing city and we need to take steps to manage that growth. Edinburgh is also a growing city economically and we need to take steps to encourage, but also to manage that economic development.
"The development of the tram helps answer both these questions - it connects communities, moves people around the city in a way no other form of transport can, and we need to be bold and tackle not only the problems staring us in the face, but the ones not far around the corner. I'm persuaded by the need to expand the tram network in Edinburgh."
The Scottish Government has so far shown little enthusiasm about funding the project, but the council has also been in talks with the UK Government's National Wealth Fund. Cllr Jenkinson said the key issue at the moment was deciding what Edinburgh wanted and the question of how it is delivered was the next stage.
But Lib Dem transport spokesman Kevin Lang sees the matter of financing as central. He said: "No matter what the feedback from the consultation, it is clear a fundamental question remains unanswered: who is going to pay for it?
“Before a single new track is laid and before a single road is dug up, it is clear tens of thousands of pounds are going to have to be spent on preparing a full business case.
“Council tax money is not paying for it, the Scottish Government is not paying for it, there is a question over whether the UK government might come in. Right now, no-one can answer the question how is this being funded. We will continue to press this Labour administration on how it will be funded.
"How can the council justify spending millions on trams when so many other parts of the council are facing such pressure?"
Tory group leader Iain Whyte is also concerned about the lack of funding. He said: "There is no money, the Scottish Government has said there's no money, so we shouldn't be spending £44m building up a business case because there's no prospect of going forward with the build-out in the longer term. Right now we are absolutely strapped for cash, so that money could be better used for other things."
And he said it was "folly" to hold the recent consultation. "We don't have the money to build the thing and you're just getting everybody irate about the Roseburn corridor when actually nothing is going to happen. It was a huge waste of public money.
"And if it takes you 10 or 15 or 20 years to get the money, you're going to have to redo this with new consultants by then anyway."
SNP transport spokesman Neil Gardiner called for Edinburgh’s neighbouring councils to be more involved with the tram project. He said: “We in the Edinburgh SNP group support citywide and regional public transport improvements to trams, buses and rail connectivity.
“We are aware that Scottish Government has stated there is a need for regional initiatives. We therefore think that the administration should better engage with our partners including East, Mid and West Lothian. Unfortunately to date we have seen little evidence of progress on this. Better connections to our hospitals are vital for all across the city and the region.
“In terms of funding sources, it will be important to understand what any proposals the administration bring forward mean for Edinburgh residents.”
And the Greens said they were in “listening mode”. Transport spokesperson Kayleigh Kinross-O'Neill said the large response to the consultation was the mark of strong engagement from the public.
She said: “Green councillors will consider those responses carefully, alongside the detailed data set out in the consultation materials. We know there will be a lot of analysis to do before this issue is reported back to committee. In the meantime, Greens will remain in listening mode and will continue dialogue with constituents and stakeholders who have questions and concerns.”