alwaysthereinspirit Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 I'm watching from the live camera and it looks like the street is closed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speedbump Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Linkage? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Markie Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Was just about to start a thread on this. Closed a whole section for tram utility work until APRIL 2009!!!!!!! I usually leave my house and get to work in 30 mins, was over an hour today and that included walking the length of Princess Street as it was much faster. Really getting fed up of the trams already and still 3 years until they are running. I was stuck in a queu from the top of Leith Street and took a good twenty mins to get from there to the Scott Monument. Going to be even worse in January when the whole of Princes Street is closed. Think I could be taking a walk home from now on, will try starting work at half 7 to see if traffic is OK at theat time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milky_26 Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 today they started the movement of utilities from the mound, so have shut part of princes st to traffic, but pedestrian access is unchanged Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The People's Chimp Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Was just about to start a thread on this. Closed a whole section for tram utility work until APRIL 2009!!!!!!! I usually leave my house and get to work in 30 mins, was over an hour today and that included walking the length of Princess Street as it was much faster. Really getting fed up of the trams already and still 3 years until they are running. I was stuck in a queu from the top of Leith Street and took a good twenty mins to get from there to the Scott Monument. Going to be even worse in January when the whole of Princes Street is closed. Think I could be taking a walk home from now on, will try starting work at half 7 to see if traffic is OK at theat time. at least you'll be there in great time...in 2011... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cigaro Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Is is affecting traffic at the roundabout at the omni centre? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Markie Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 at least you'll be there in great time...in 2011... Where I live it would mean a twenty minute walk just to be at the nearest tram stop. For all the money it's costing don't see the point for the amount of the city it's going to serve. Been wanting a rant about this all morning and feel better now I have it all out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jambo Ell Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Trams are a waste of time and money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The People's Chimp Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Where I live it would mean a twenty minute walk just to be at the nearest tram stop. For all the money it's costing don't see the point for the amount of the city it's going to serve. Been wanting a rant about this all morning and feel better now I have it all out! The problem with the trams was that they took em out in the first place. I lived in Grenoble where they have an absolutely amazing tram service. It was ridiculously good. They opened it in 1975; that means with planning, and building, they started it in say 1973, and probably will have planned it in the years before that. We ripped out our last trams here in scotland/UK in the 60's. So, at most a 5-10 year gap in which we were ripping them up and the French were building them... Edinburgh wasn't so bad, in 1956 and in Glasgow it was 1963 but it just shows the shortsightedness of so many involved in planning decisions in this country; idiotic decisions which continue to this day. I don't know why the UK has had such a downer on quality rail projects, but as alluded to in another thread, thatcher and the tories must shoulder the blame for the current mess of the railways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redm Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Is is affecting traffic at the roundabout at the omni centre? It wasn't too bad just before 9 this morning but that was unusual in itself. It's normally a nightmare at the moment. I can't imagine this will help at all as closing Princes St just means that even more traffic will be diverted along Queen St instead of Leith St. I hate these trams already. Pointless, ridiculous, inconvenient waste of far too much money. Pfft. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boris Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Surely the time to judge the benefits (or not) of the trams is when they are fully operational? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig_ Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 The problem with the trams was that they took em out in the first place. I lived in Grenoble where they have an absolutely amazing tram service. It was ridiculously good. They opened it in 1975; that means with planning, and building, they started it in say 1973, and probably will have planned it in the years before that. We ripped out our last trams here in scotland/UK in the 60's. So, at most a 5-10 year gap in which we were ripping them up and the French were building them... Edinburgh wasn't so bad, in 1956 and in Glasgow it was 1963 but it just shows the shortsightedness of so many involved in planning decisions in this country; idiotic decisions which continue to this day. I don't know why the UK has had such a downer on quality rail projects, but as alluded to in another thread, thatcher and the tories must shoulder the blame for the current mess of the railways. You should think yourself lucky - we came very close to a motorway being built through Tollcross in the 60s! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The People's Chimp Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 You should think yourself lucky - we came very close to a motorway being built through Tollcross in the 60s! wooft! that would have been an unmitigated disaster.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blairdin Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 The problem with the trams was that they took em out in the first place. I lived in Grenoble where they have an absolutely amazing tram service. It was ridiculously good. They opened it in 1975; that means with planning, and building, they started it in say 1973, and probably will have planned it in the years before that. We ripped out our last trams here in scotland/UK in the 60's. So, at most a 5-10 year gap in which we were ripping them up and the French were building them... Edinburgh wasn't so bad, in 1956 and in Glasgow it was 1963 but it just shows the shortsightedness of so many involved in planning decisions in this country; idiotic decisions which continue to this day. I don't know why the UK has had such a downer on quality rail projects, but as alluded to in another thread, thatcher and the tories must shoulder the blame for the current mess of the railways. Agree with most of that, but surely the problems with the railways can be traced back to Beeching and nationalisation in the 1960s? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david mcgee Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Nobody is going to shop in town. This council plan will be a great boost for out of town shopping centres. By the time the trams are ready to run there wont be a shop left in the City centre. Never mind, the trams will run both ways, so you will be able to get out of the ghost town a lot quicker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The People's Chimp Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Agree with most of that, but surely the problems with the railways can be traced back to Beeching and nationalisation in the 1960s? Aye, you're right about the mass closures of many lines and stations, I don't know about nationalisation though. In any event it's a bit before my time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wattie Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 I waited for nearly half an hour on the bus arriving this morning....then it went straight past as it was full. Naturally, I was not a happy bunny. Still, at least I can get the tram from town to Riccarton when this is all finished.....ah wait. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boris Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Nobody is going to shop in town. This council plan will be a great boost for out of town shopping centres. By the time the trams are ready to run there wont be a shop left in the City centre. Never mind, the trams will run both ways, so you will be able to get out of the ghost town a lot quicker. I disagree. Princes Street is a ten minute walk from where I live, so why would i wish to frequent soulless barns such as The Gyle or Ocean Terminal? I like shopping in the town centre and, judging by the amount of people I see there at the same time I am there, so do others. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottish_chicP Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 I absolutely despise the trams already. For the past three months it has taken at least an hour to get into work and home again. Used to only take 30-40 mins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gershwin Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Every day something else is closed or buses are re routed past the stop I get on at. It's ****ing nippy. And they've STILL not sorted out the traffic lights and zebras on George Street. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david mcgee Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 I disagree. Princes Street is a ten minute walk from where I live, so why would i wish to frequent soulless barns such as The Gyle or Ocean Terminal? I like shopping in the town centre and, judging by the amount of people I see there at the same time I am there, so do others. You disagree! You and all the other people that live within ten minutes walk of Princes Street will continue to shop there, whether that will be enough to get the shops through the next couple of years is debateable. As for those that live in Corstorphine, Drylaw, Pilton, Trinity, Leith, Portobello, Musselburgh, Dalkeith, Swanston, Oxgangs, Balerno, Currie, Sighthill................... They will avoid the City Centre at all costs. Happy shopping! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stewart MacD Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Don't people read newspapers or listen to the news these days? I live in Sydney and knew about these road closures, courtesy of the BBC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The People's Chimp Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 You disagree! You and all the other people that live within ten minutes walk of Princes Street will continue to shop there, whether that will be enough to get the shops through the next couple of years is debateable. As for those that live in Corstorphine, Drylaw, Pilton, Trinity, Leith, Portobello, Musselburgh, Dalkeith, Swanston, Oxgangs, Balerno, Currie, Sighthill................... They will avoid the City Centre at all costs. Happy shopping! It's a common trend though that people are going back to shopping in town centres; I don't think some roadworks will make too much difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Markie Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Don't people read newspapers or listen to the news these days? I live in Sydney and knew about these road closures, courtesy of the BBC. I still need to get a bus down Princes Street for work, no toher route for me, the road closures have been pretty well advertised IMO there just a pain in tha arse Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Romanov Saviour of HMFC Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 You disagree! You and all the other people that live within ten minutes walk of Princes Street will continue to shop there, whether that will be enough to get the shops through the next couple of years is debateable. As for those that live in Corstorphine, Drylaw, Pilton, Trinity, Leith, Portobello, Musselburgh, Dalkeith, Swanston, Oxgangs, Balerno, Currie, Sighthill................... They will avoid the City Centre at all costs. Happy shopping! I agree. For me it's a choice between 15 minutes to Ocean Terminal or 1 hour to fecking Princes Street which should take about 30 minutes. No choice really. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tazio Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Took me 50 minutes on the bus today instead of the usual 20. Jumped off the bus early and sprinted (as well as I can manage) up the road. Got to work and discovered everyone had the same tale to tell apart from people coming from the south or west of the city. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barby Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Surely the time to judge the benefits (or not) of the trams is when they are fully operational? (In a very small voice) I agree with Boris. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barby Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Took me 50 minutes on the bus today instead of the usual 20. Jumped off the bus early and sprinted (as well as I can manage) up the road. Got to work and discovered everyone had the same tale to tell apart from people coming from the south or west of the city. and it's all uphill to your place of work I will add it took me 90 mins to get from Joppa to Stevenson College yesterday a.m. and most of that was trying to get from the house to Holyrood Park....... Today it took me all of 4 mins to get to work Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boris Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 You disagree! You and all the other people that live within ten minutes walk of Princes Street will continue to shop there, whether that will be enough to get the shops through the next couple of years is debateable. As for those that live in Corstorphine, Drylaw, Pilton, Trinity, Leith, Portobello, Musselburgh, Dalkeith, Swanston, Oxgangs, Balerno, Currie, Sighthill................... They will avoid the City Centre at all costs. Happy shopping! But don't these people use the out of town shopping centres already? Of course they do. But of course they shop in the city centre too. It's horses for courses, in that at times I use the out of town shops myself. I do think that projections of a city centre ghost town are far from the reality. Also, re the trams, the work going on is moving utility pipelines etc in preperation for the tram lines being laid. Imagine for a second that the trams were not an issue here and that the unrest and disruption was caused by essential repairs to the utility pipelines - would people still be as angry? Or would it be seen as a necessary evil? My point is that this work would have to be done some time. We are upgrading our utilities as well as getting trams - the work would have to be done at some point irrespective of whether we get trams or not! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boris Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 and it's all uphill to your place of work I will add it took me 90 mins to get from Joppa to Stevenson College yesterday a.m. and most of that was trying to get from the house to Holyrood Park....... Today it took me all of 4 mins to get to work So that CERN thingy really is a transporter machine?!?!?!?!?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beverley Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 how do you think i feel being at the mercy of the 22 from the foot of leith to the gyle?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boris Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 how do you think i feel being at the mercy of the 22 from the foot of leith to the gyle?? Walk on the pavement instead of the bus lane?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The People's Chimp Posted October 1, 2008 Share Posted October 1, 2008 Agree with most of that, but surely the problems with the railways can be traced back to Beeching and nationalisation in the 1960s? http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/7644630.stm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coco Posted October 2, 2008 Share Posted October 2, 2008 But don't these people use the out of town shopping centres already? Of course they do. But of course they shop in the city centre too. It's horses for courses, in that at times I use the out of town shops myself. I do think that projections of a city centre ghost town are far from the reality. Also, re the trams, the work going on is moving utility pipelines etc in preperation for the tram lines being laid. Imagine for a second that the trams were not an issue here and that the unrest and disruption was caused by essential repairs to the utility pipelines - would people still be as angry? Or would it be seen as a necessary evil? My point is that this work would have to be done some time. We are upgrading our utilities as well as getting trams - the work would have to be done at some point irrespective of whether we get trams or not! The utilities are being covered over with the usual bottoming stuff. They are not being boxed in as they are on the Continent. When the utilities need fixed or checked in future - they will for example on Leith Walk cause one whole side of the street to be closed to buses/cars/taxis/bikes etc. What a waste of money. At least ?600bn to increase congestion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
footieman Posted October 2, 2008 Share Posted October 2, 2008 Tram developers have apologised for delays on Edinburgh's city centre roads during the first day of road works at the Mound. The city centre was gridlocked during the morning rush hour with buses being held up for an hour and some passengers getting off to walk to work. Transport Initiatives Edinburgh (Tie) said temporary traffic measures had not been "fully working". http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/edinburgh_and_east/7646727.stm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boris Posted October 2, 2008 Share Posted October 2, 2008 The utilities are being covered over with the usual bottoming stuff. They are not being boxed in as they are on the Continent. When the utilities need fixed or checked in future - they will for example on Leith Walk cause one whole side of the street to be closed to buses/cars/taxis/bikes etc. What a waste of money. At least ?600bn to increase congestion. I don't understand the boxed in thing you talk of. If the pipes etc are underground and even if they are boxed, wouldn't the road still need to be dug up to fix them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seats Posted October 2, 2008 Share Posted October 2, 2008 I'm watching from the live camera and it looks like the street is closed. How bored do you have to be to watch a live cam of princes st? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redm Posted October 2, 2008 Share Posted October 2, 2008 Surely the time to judge the benefits (or not) of the trams is when they are fully operational? Yes, you're probably right...but they're inconveniencing me so I feel entitled to whinge about it at will until such time that these benefits become apparent. Plus, at that cost...the benefits better be something incredible...these trams better be capable of doubling up as time machines or something, at the very least. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boris Posted October 2, 2008 Share Posted October 2, 2008 Yes, you're probably right...but they're inconveniencing me so I feel entitled to whinge about it at will until such time that these benefits become apparent. Plus, at that cost...the benefits better be something incredible...these trams better be capable of doubling up as time machines or something, at the very least. Say it was just to update the utilities pipes etc (as they are doing at the moment), would that still be as much of an issue? We all need clean drinking water and gas etc, right? I suppose what I'm trying to say is that it isn't just about trams but about the whole infrastructure of the city and sooner or later these things will need looked at. Now is that time. Hopefully the trams will be the business though so in ten years time we can all sit round and laugh at how everyone got their Alan's in a twist at the time... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbos Right Peg Posted October 2, 2008 Share Posted October 2, 2008 Trams fekin trams I will never in my life step on a fekin tram. I use the airport a lot but can promise I will get a tram to somewhere I dont want to go and then get off with my suitcase to get in a taxi that DOES take me to where I want to go. Maybe they will help Polish people to get from their home to their 'alternative' home. By the time 2011 comes round nobody will be able to afford to go on a fekin tram anyway. Its a joke total fekin joke and if you or your dad is one of these barstwards that took the brown envelope stuffed with cash hang your head in shame. They used to talk about the monument at the top of Calton Hill as Edinburghs shame come 2011 (or later) I have a feeling it could be the trams Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boris Posted October 2, 2008 Share Posted October 2, 2008 Trams fekin trams I will never in my life step on a fekin tram. I use the airport a lot but can promise I will get a tram to somewhere I dont want to go and then get off with my suitcase to get in a taxi that DOES take me to where I want to go. Maybe they will help Polish people to get from their home to their 'alternative' home. By the time 2011 comes round nobody will be able to afford to go on a fekin tram anyway. Its a joke total fekin joke and if you or your dad is one of these barstwards that took the brown envelope stuffed with cash hang your head in shame. They used to talk about the monument at the top of Calton Hill as Edinburghs shame come 2011 (or later) I have a feeling it could be the trams How are you to be taken seriously when you promise one thing initially and then repudiate it immediately! Not sure what the Poles have to do with things either, but hey-ho... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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