Tuesday August 18th 2026
Proposed route map for phases 1 and 2 of the South Sub project
Written by Midlothian View Reporter, Liam Eunson
Transport Scotland have today announced that they will work with Network Rail to do a high-level feasibility study, of the proposal to reintroduce passenger services on the Edinburgh South Suburban railway, the ‘South Sub’, using tram-trains. It seems the study will look at the technical feasibility of the proposal rather than developing a business case, which will follow later.
Campaign group Tram Trains for Edinburgh (TTfE) explained that they don’t believe there are practical obstacles to the project but as a campaign group they ‘don’t have access to the data, so it’s great to see this initiative’.
Given Network Rail own the assets it’s right they are asked to undertake the study, and if the project goes ahead, they will play a key role in delivering it.
Where the line joins the tram route near Murrayfield will present an engineering challenge; although TTfE believe there are various options to connect to the existing tram line. Likewise, to bridge the East Coast Main Line to reach Portobello, there are several possible solutions.
Tram Trains for Edinburgh believes that in comparison to many transport projects, which would be years in the making, the South Sub represents a ‘quick win’. This feasibility study is a crucial first step in getting services back on the ‘South Sub’.
Rob Falcon, Chair of Tram Trains for Edinburgh, said:
“This month TTfE passes its first anniversary campaigning to return public transport to the South Sub – although of course many other groups have argued for this over the decades. The ‘game changer’ is the use of tram-trains that can run onto the existing tram line and into the city centre – avoiding the Waverley bottleneck; and with much of the infrastructure already in place, we believe this is a hugely practical project.
“We welcome this great news for TTfE, as will all our members, supporters and thousands of people across Edinburgh – and indeed many of our political representatives – who have called for the project. Thanks to Transport Scotland.”
Tram Trains for Edinburgh is a constituted campaign group arguing for the reopening of the South Suburban railway across the south side of Edinburgh, using tram-trains; whilst also advocating for a mass transit network for the region, including the city tram extension. Tram-trains combine the flexibility and accessibility of trams whilst being able to use existing rail routes.
The campaign group was founded in August 2025 to ‘promote the construction and use of public transport in Edinburgh by the use of tram-train technology and to integrate such developments with the existing tram and/or rail networks’, launching a new campaign after many years of previous failed attempts. The TTfE campaign group was formed partly in response to the significant public interest in the proposal to run tram-trains on the South Sub developed by Heriot-Watt University students in early 2025.
Spanning 12.3km, the proposed line links Murrayfield stadium in the west of the city with Portobello on its eastern boundary, passing through the key neighbourhoods of Craiglockhart, Morningside, Newington, Cameron Toll, Craigmillar, Fort Kinnaird and Brunstane, estimated to cost a shockingly low value of around £16 million.
The project also has potential for an interchange at Cameron Toll that could lead to posible connections to Dalkeith and further Midlothian.
Implementing the old ‘South Sub’ westward from Portobello, it will utilise the previous transport network that closed for public service on the 10th of September 1962. This ‘South Sub’ route was a popular rail service for over 20 years, connecting outer parts of the capital with the city centre, bringing connectivity of communities for work and pleasure which the new TTfE campaign aims to re-introduce.
Re-introducing this exciting rail track into the public eye isn’t the first time a campaign has sparked public attention, with previous studies since 1989 highlighting the positive outcomes of re-introducing the railway network. Since the opening of the Edinburgh Tram network in 2014, the expansion to Leith opening in 2023 and the recent discussions surrounding adding to the network, it has been brought into the public eye by TTfE and the Heriot Watt University study due to the implementation of ‘game-changing’ tram-trains.
With other European cities, such as Sheffield, using tram-train travel, supporters believe this is the perfect way to re-introduce the South Suburban Railway with newer tram and rail travel.
Tram-trains, also known as dual-system trams, is an urban rail transit system designed to both operate as trams on urban street-level networks and as trains on heavy mainline railway tracks.
One issue in the plan surrounds a connection at Murrayfield where a Network Rail bridge would need to be implemented to allow the line to pass through the busy Edinburgh to Glasgow mainline without disruption.
Example of how the underpass would need to be modified
The study from Heriot Watt University found a solution to this problem being a line that ran on the road through the underpass but it is estimated to cost around a quarter of the estimated overall spending.
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