Councillors approve Edinburgh tram U-turn

2 September 2011 Last updated at 08:04 ET

Councillors have now agreed that the route ends at St Andrew Square, in the city centre

Councillors in Edinburgh have voted to run the trams into the city centre ending the route at St Andrew Square.

At a special meeting they threw out the decision made just a week ago to terminate the line at Haymarket.

The U-turn comes after the Scottish government said it would withhold £72m of funding for the £1bn project.

SNP members backed their Lib Dem coalition partners and Labour members also decided at the last minute to support the St Andrew Square option.

Last week, Labour and Conservative councillors joined forces to reject plans to borrow an extra £230m to run the line into the city centre.

Instead, a Labour amendment to stop the line at Haymarket was passed. The move was described as “bonkers” by the chief executive of Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce.

In this latest vote 28 councillors backed the St Andrew Square option with 15 voting against.

Work is now due to restart on Princes Street on Monday and trams will run at the earliest in 2014.

The report which came before councillors at the special meeting said: “The option to complete the project to St Andrew Square is believed to yield the best prospect of a return on investment relative to the original aims of the project and to deliver best value for the city, the council and the Edinburgh Tram Project.”

The trams will now run along Princes Street to St Andrew Square

It went on to recommend the option to build from Edinburgh Airport to St Andrew Square/York Place be adopted.

The report further recommended agreement to fund the borrowing required “out of current and future resources as set out in the funding proposals and to allow the council flexibility to adopt alternative sources if considered appropriate”.

The trams project, which is over budget and late, has been plagued with controversy.

The issue has divided Edinburgh’s politicians, businesses and the public.

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