Updated 16:10, Friday 24 January
Following advice from the Scottish Government and Police Scotland, we are sorry that we have now taken the difficult decision to suspend all services from 10:00, and service will not resume today (Friday 24 January).
Our engineers have spent the afternoon assessing the status of the tram network, including the overhead lines, and we regret to announce that we are not able to resume service. We will continue to monitor the equipment overnight to ensure the tram can operate safely from the beginning of service tomorrow morning (Saturday 25 January).
The safety of customers and colleagues is of critical importance, and due to the weather and other factors, such as debris on the line, trams cannot safely operate. Customers are being strongly advised not to travel, and no alternative transport will be available.
The Met Office issued a rare Red weather warning, which covers most of central Scotland and all of Edinburgh. This will bring extremely high winds, with gusts reaching up to 100mph.
The red warning will be in place from 10:00 until 17:00 on Friday. An Amber warning will be in place during the rest of the day outwith those hours across most of Scotland.
Extremely high winds can lead to trees and other debris on tracks, or damage to overhead lines and trams, which could make conditions unsafe for the trams to operate.
All service updates will be posted on the Edinburgh Trams Twitter (X) page, and customers are advised to check the Bus & Tram app, the Edinburgh Trams website or social media channels for additional service updates before travelling. This is a fast-moving situation, and advice may continue to change.
Sarah Singh, Head of Service Delivery, said, “The safety of all customers and colleagues is of paramount important to us at Edinburgh Trams, and the decision to close services is not taken lightly. We are advising everyone to take advice from Police Scotland and the Scottish Government seriously, and not to travel unless absolutely necessary.
Our team will be working flat out once weather conditions improve to ensure that trams can resume service safely on Saturday. The latest service updates can be found on our X account.”
