Was Orchard Brae tram plan actually designed to bankrupt Edinburgh? – John McLellan

No survey I’ve ever seen indicates the Edinburgh public wants more money spent on trams but encouraged by the Scottish Government’s new-found support in principle, the council seems hell-bent on new lines south to the Bioquarter and north to Granton.

If so, it’s essential the most cost-effective option is taken and, at the recent Edinburgh Tourism Action Group conference, Transport for Edinburgh chief executive George Lowder explained why the next stage after the Newhaven line should be the conversion of the disused railway from Roseburn to Granton, currently a footpath and cycleway. “We have permissions and it would be less expensive than going to the south-east,” he said. “The alignment is relatively straightforward, and the majority is off-road.”