Edinburgh's trams run from the airport on the western outskirts of the city to the docks and seaside communities in the North of the city.
The trams have been in operation from Edinburgh Airport to St Andrew Square since 31 May 2014 and has from the city centre to Newhaven since June 2023.
Edinburgh Tram Routes
The Edinburgh tram follows a route from Ocean Terminal at Leith Docks in the North of the City, passes along Leith Walk to Princes Street via St Andrew Square, continues West to Haymarket, past Murrayfield, out to the busy Edinburgh Park interchange, continuing past the Gyle near the city outskirts, and on to Edinburgh Airport.
The trams
Edinburgh’s trams are 42.8m long and 2.65m wide with 7 articulated sections. There is a capacity for approximately 250 passengers on each, which is the equivalent to 2.5 double deck buses.
The trams are 100% low floor with level boarding, large door vestibule areas and wide aisles making the tram ideal for buggies and prams
On-street the trams can travel up to 50kph (30mph) and off-street the trams can reach a maximum of 70kph (about 45mph).
Journey time is 36 minutes from St Andrew Square to Edinburgh Airport.
The trams can negotiate tight curves and steepish gradients, such as the gradual climb on Leith Walk when the original tram plan is completed (there is no plan to put a tram up the Mound).
Trams have low noise, smooth acceleration and braking, and state of the art security features and information systems.
Edinburgh Trams Background
Originally the trams were due to be running by 2011, some 65 years after the last tram trundled through the capital's streets. However, after delays, budget issues, and a contractual dispute, a curtailed tramline opened on 31 May 2014 from Edinburgh Airport at St Andrew Square / York Place. It was five years late, cost £776m, and was one of the most contentious in Edinburgh during the construction stage.
A fleet of 27 trams were due to ferry up to 20,000 passengers per hour through the city from the Airport to Newhaven. However, the initial section only went as far as York Place in Edinburgh City Centre.
The 2.9-mile extension of the tram route from Picardy to Newhaven eventually opened nine years later on 7 June 2023.
Constrution of the Newhaven extension started in November 2019.
The trams schedule and tram tickets are integrated with Lothian bus timetables and bus tickets.
Related sites
- Edinburgh Trams (Edinburgh City Council) The official site for Edinburgh trams.