Edinburgh's expanding population could mean an extra 300 buses at peak times

Underlining the need for the proposed new North-South tram route from Granton to the Royal Infirmary and beyond, he said Princes Street could not be allowed to become "a bus park".

But despite uncertainty over Scottish Government funding for the £2 billion new tramline, he rejected a call to opt for a cheaper "Bus Rapid Transit" (BRT) scheme - a dedicated busway - for the North-South route instead of trams.

Funding from the Scottish Government for the new North-South tramline is uncertain

Edinburgh's Tory group leader Iain Whyte had previously argued that a BRT system could be achieved in a quarter to a third of the time of the tram, at potentially one tenth of the cost, and could be replaced by trams in the longer term.

But a report to be considered by the transport committee next week says BRT would require more land than trams, carry fewer passengers and cost more in maintenance.

It concluded: "Trams have been proven to be consistently successful in the United Kingdom. By contrast, not all BRT systems have achieved the same results."

The City of Edinburgh Rapid Transport (CERT) guided busway project ran for a short stretch in the west of the city before it was abandoned.

Cllr Jenkinson said: "In a city like Ednburgh, where we have to think how we move a mass number of people around the city efficiently, I don't think anything can land a glove on trams.

"Based on population growth of Edinburgh and Lothians over the foreseeable future, if we do nothing on mass public transport in Edinburgh we would require an extra 300 buses at peak times to move people around the city.

"We need solutions that are future-proofed for the city.We need mass public transport because this city and region are developing and growing faster than anywhere else in the country.

"If we're not on the front foot with this, we're going to be in a situation where just to satisfy the public transport requirements of the people living and working here if we do nothing Princes Street will be a bus park and no-one's going to be moving anywhere.”

Edinburgh had its own short section of off-road dedicated busway from Stenhouse to Broomhouse between 2004 and 2009. But the £10m City of Edinburgh Rapid Transit scheme (CERT) - which saw buses with guide-wheels running on segregated concrete tracks but able to run on normal roads as well - was then abandoned and converted into part of the tramline.

But Cllr Jenkinson said as part of a wider regional integrated transport system, BRT could “complement” the planned new tramline by linking to it.