• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
Transform Scotland

Transform Scotland

  • About Us
        • Our team
        • Our members
        • Contact us
        • About us

  • Our Priorities
        • Safe places for active travel
        • Zero-carbon connectivity
        • Zero-carbon public transport
        • Zero-carbon investment
        • Fair transport pricing
        • Our priorties

  • Our Work
        • Publications
        • Our projects
        • #lovemybus
        • Consultancy
        • Cross-Party Group
        • Our work

  • Latest
        • News
        • Alerts
        • Events
        • Latest

  • Join us
  • Donate

Trams to Newhaven — Member Profile for June 2021 newsletter

17 June 2021

by Transform Scotland

FacebookTweetEmailLinkedIn

Trams to Newhaven Supporting Local Businesses  

Now 18 months into construction, the Trams to Newhaven project is making visible strides in its progress. The project, which will add 4.69 kilometres of track to the existing Edinburgh tramline, is set to take its first paying customers by Spring 2023.

Connecting Leith and Newhaven to the city centre and adding eight new stops, Trams to Newhaven will offer residents access to high capacity light rail. This will sit alongside the existing Lothian bus service, as well as improved cycling and walking infrastructure along the route.

Construction commenced in November 2019, while at the same time a £2.4 million support for business package for local businesses was also introduced. This package includes an open for business marketing campaign for the local area, an art mural trail and a voucher scheme for independent businesses. In partnership with deal website Itison, the discount scheme allows customers to purchase vouchers online to spend in local stores at a discounted rate. The discount is funded by the project and local businesses receive 100% of the vouchers value. This scheme has proved extremely popular with Edinburgh locals, with vouchers selling out within days of release. So far over £150k worth of vouchers have been sold for redemption in small businesses across the construction route.

A small mural trail was also launched in Leith last Summer. This mural trail comprises of over 20 utility cabinets on Leith Walk and Constitution Street, exhibiting the work of local aspiring and established graffiti and street artists. Artists have often themed their designs around the unique and diverse culture of Leith, with boxes inspired by local folklore and the neighbourhood’s motto ‘persevere’. Hoped to enliven the area, further murals are set to be added to the art trail later this year.

Furthermore, Trams to Newhaven has a dedicated business support service. This service aids small businesses affected by construction to engage in training and development activities. Delivered via the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce, training courses such as ‘Social Media for Small Businesses’ and ‘Small Business Branding’ have been launched to ensure these businesses not only survive the short-term strain of construction but thrive following the introduction of trams into Leith.

You can find out more about Trams to Newhaven, further support for business measures and the project’s progress at tramstonewhaven.co.uk

NewsPublic transport

Share

FacebookTweetEmailLinkedIn
Back to Latest

Latest posts

A Sustainable Transport Commission for Scotland? Lessons from Wales

21 March 2023

North Wales Transport Commissioner Sue Flack reports on recent policy developments in Wales and what Scotland can learn from their success. Transform Scotland is always keen to learn lessons from…

Read more

NewsPolicy Public transport

AGM & Conference | Friends of the Far North Line

🗓️ 16 May 2023

Read more

EventsPublic transport

Two Scottish companies among top 10 in global study on corporate travel and reporting air travel emissions

15 March 2023

Two companies headquartered in Scotland, Lloyds Banking Group and Abrdn, feature in the top 10 of 322 businesses ranked by the ‘Travel Smart’ campaign. The ranking reviews how companies are…

Read more

NewsAviation

Public transport begins recovery from pandemic lows

14 March 2023

Transform Scotland heralded the resilience of public transport and active travel as the latest Scottish Transport Statistics show a marked increase in journeys in 2021/22 compared to the previous year…

Read more

NewsActive Travel Cars Public transport Traffic

Sign up for email updates

We'll send you news on our work, plus other updates about how you can get involved in Scotland's campaign for sustainable transport.

  • Terms & Conditions
  • Cookies policy
  • Credits
  • Accessibility
  • Work for us
  • Leave a legacy
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • LinkedIn

© 2023 Transform Scotland is a registered Scottish charity (SC041516)


Share this ArticleLike this article? Email it to a friend!

Email sent!