To the ancient town of Leith! Or part way there at least, by tram now that the extension down Leith Walk is open.
I took the tram today from Balgreen to about two thirds of the way down Leith Walk. Strolling back up the Walk in the sunshine, passing many many people enjoying the café/pavement culture that has sprung up, while trams clanged their way up and down, the whole thing suddenly felt very European and alive in a way that the number 12 bus never so much as hinted at, and certainly wasn’t true when I first came here in 1977.
Previously, I doubted the need for the single line of the Edinburgh Tram because we already have a very good public transit system. I think that I was wrong about that; I now think the tram brings something new. Ironically, given the devastation to businesses that tram works have wrought, I reckon that the tramline will open things up in unexpected ways.
Edinburgh and Leith have always been in states of constant change, not always for the better; currently the city feels like it’s on an upswing, however much we residents find to grumble about.
The cross-London Elizabeth Line caused a surge in building around the new stations years before the trains started calling at them. For me, it not only makes central London more accessible, but further-flung places like Chatham, Greenwich and Crystal Palace are now an easy day trip.
New transport promotes growth, but sometimes we have to be patient. Yesterday I walked under the Colne Valley Viaduct, being built to carry the HS2 to Birmingham and Manchester, which it is due to reach by 2043. There should be astronauts on Mars before that.