Design Engagement Process
Edinburgh Tram Inquiry · Edinburgh Tram Inquiry Report · Issued 12 September 2023 · Addressed to: City of Edinburgh Council
Source — verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation
Following designer appointment, continuous engagement with promoters, owners, project managers, planning authorities, utility companies, and affected landowners should clarify design criteria, with local planning authorities producing detailed design guidelines beforehand and collaborative resolution of design issues throughout.
Edinburgh Tram Inquiry, Edinburgh Tram Inquiry Report · 12 Sep 2023 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
Publicly available evidence relating to this recommendation:
- The Council committee report (16 November 2023) acknowledged that the original tram project lacked a single point of contact to coordinate design responses, and that this had been addressed in the Newhaven project (City of Edinburgh Council Committee Report, 16 November 2023).
- No published formal guidance requiring continuous engagement between promoters, owners, and planning authorities on design criteria for future light rail projects has been identified to March 2026.
Sources
Response — verbatim from government
●City of Edinburgh Council — initial response
Council Leader Cammy Day stated: 'We know that serious mistakes were made in the construction of the original tram line.' The Council broadly agrees with Lord Hardie's recommendations but notes improvements were already implemented for the successful Trams to Newhaven project. The Council has not published a formal detailed response to individual recommendations. Source: Council news release, 2 November 2023.
City of Edinburgh Council · 2 Nov 2023 Written response →
●City of Edinburgh Council — follow-up
The Inquiry Report identifies a difference in the approach taken by the Council to design before and after the Mar Hall mediation. Prior to the mediation there was not a single point of contact at the Council to coordinate the design responses and this led to confusion as to the Council's position. In order to avoid this in future, Lord Hardie recommends that the Council produces detailed design guidance to assist design development, collaborate with the designer to resolve design issues and coordinate the response to design queries such that clear instructions can be given. It is recommended that the Council should adopt this Recommendation. Source: Chief Executive's report to Transport and Environment Committee, 16 November 2023. Note: City of Edinburgh Council statuses are drawn from the Chief Executive's report to the Transport and Environment Committee (16 November 2023), referred to the full Council on 14 December 2023. This report appears to have been formally adopted but independent confirmation has not been obtained.
City of Edinburgh Council · 16 Nov 2023 Written response →
Evidence trail — what's actually happened since
- 2 Nov 2023 Initial status based on Scottish Government and City of Edinburgh Council responses to the Edinburgh Tram Inquiry Report (September 2023). Source →
Each entry above links to a primary source — gov.uk written statement, consultation response document, or inspection report. The Index does not characterise government intent; it tracks what has been published.
How this page is built
Source and Response are verbatim from primary documents. The Evidence trail records published activity since — written statements, consultation outcomes, inspection findings, parliamentary references. The Index does not paraphrase or characterise intent; it tracks what has been published. Where the evidence is the absence of action (a missed deadline, a slipped timetable), that absence is documented from primary sources rather than inferred.
This recommendation's data is verified periodically against primary sources. The Index is monitored for staleness weekly.