... while the first is only half finished!

EDINBURGH'S tram developers were yesterday criticised for their "absurd" revelation that they are planning a fourth route even as problems mount with the half-built first line. The news came as Edinburgh Trams chief executive Richard Jeffrey admitted that a major dispute which had delayed construction "could not be further" from the position he would have preferred.

The city council firm, formerly TIE, confirmed it was considering a line along London Road to eastern Edinburgh as part of an eventual tram network across the city. An initial 11-mile route is being built from Edinburgh Airport to Newhaven, while the Scottish Parliament has also approved a loop via Granton and a western extension to Newbridge.

Talks are to be held over Edinburgh's trams project in a bid to end a stalemate which has brought work on key sections of the route to a standstill. The project is already two years behind schedule and there are growing concerns about the final cost of the scheme. The talks come amid speculation that tram project bosses are preparing to tear up their contract with the German firm, Bilfinger Berger.

The company has been blamed by some for causing many of the delays. Bilfinger Berger is contractually prohibited from commenting on those allegations. But BBC Scotland environment correspondent David Miller said it was clear that relations between the contractors and Transport Initiatives Edinburgh (Tie), which is running the tram project, have reached rock bottom.

Managers from Tie will meet on Wednesday with senior councillors and officials from Edinburgh City Council to brief them on what they believe is the best way forward. There now seems no doubt the final cost of the project will be far higher than the budget of £545m, but it is likely to be some time before the outcome of the meeting is revealed, with managers saying negotiations must remain confidential.

AN INDEPENDENT audit into Edinburgh's crisis-hit tram scheme was demanded last night, amid allegations that project chiefs were mishandling the construction contract. Two MSPs called for the project to be scrutinised by public spending watchdogs Audit Scotland in an effort to reassure residents.

However, the city council said the move would cause huge damage by diverting officials away from trying to have work on the project speeded up. The call came as tram sources claimed to The Scotsman that the city council-owned company in charge of the £545 million scheme had resorted to strong-arm tactics against the firms building the 11.5-mile line. The firm admitted yesterday that £338m had been spent so far.

THE image of famous Edinburgh citizens such as pop star Shirley Manson and Ian Rankin could feature on specially designed trams to showcase the city's culture. They feature in a series of concept tram liveries unveiled by the city council yesterday, which also highlight Edinburgh's scientific achievements.

The designs were published as project chiefs admitted more ground testing should have preceded the moving of underground pipes and cables from the tram route, which may now be finished two years late. Special tram liveries are planned for two of the 27-strong fleet, with a further two available for commercial sponsorship.

PLANS for well-known Edinburgh figures to promote the city's controversial tram scheme backfired yesterday when a best-selling author hit out at council officials for using his name and face without permission. Crime writer Ian Rankin told his followers on social networking site Twitter of his anger at reading of proposals for his "mug-shot" to help showcase the city. The Rebus creator was featured with singer Shirley Manson, Harry Potter creator JK Rowling and the late author Muriel Spark in sample designs for the trams unveiled by the council on Monday.

Special liveries are planned for two vehicles, with another two available for sponsorship. Rankin – who set his latest novel against a backdrop of rising anger over the delayed project, the property crash and the banking crisis – posted a link to a report about the designs on his blog.

But he then wrote: "Hmm … I wish they'd asked permission to put my mug-shot on the tram mock-up, or at least digitally aged me 10-20 years (tram-line ETA). Actually saw the mock-up pic in dentist's waiting room. Dentist came out to see who was making the teeth-gnashing sounds."

DRIVERS and pedestrians will next month win a respite from Edinburgh's tram works when a series of restrictions are lifted until the construction dispute is resolved. Traffic diversions around Haymarket and barriers across Leith Walk will be removed within weeks because the start of track-laying has been postponed, The Scotsman has learned.

Shandwick Place will also be reopened for westbound buses and taxis – removing a detour via the Western Approach Road. The move will follow the long-delayed completion of preliminary work to move underground pipes and cables from the tram route, which should have finished at the end of 2008.

MOTORISTS are facing more roadworks misery as tram works return to Princes Street at the start of next month, it was revealed today. The Mound is to be closed again to complete work that was postponed to allow Princes Street to reopen in time for last year's winter festivities.

The work is set to take five weeks from 1 May – clashing with the nearby General Assembly for the Church of Scotland – though tram chiefs are confident the chaos which ensued the first time The Mound was shut will not be repeated. Part of Hanover Street will also be closed, with traffic diverted along George Street, North St David Street, Waverley Bridge and Market Street.

The first tram for Scotland's capital is due to arrive in the city before it is put on public display. The 141 foot vehicle, which can carry 250 people, was transported from Germany after a successful series of tests.

It is the first of 27 and will be placed at the Princes Street tram stop, between Hanover Street and Frederick Street in Edinburgh. The tram will arrive in the city in sections before it is assembled.

THE Capital's beleagered tram project will not be delivered on time, it was reported today. The project deadline of 2012, on which the consortium of developers have been working to, is now expected to be pushed back to 2013.

Gordon Mackenzie, the council's transport convenor, said: "Across the project, we're looking for three per cent progress per month and getting less than one per cent. It's very disappointing. The weather's good; there's no reason the place shouldn't be alive with contractors working on many of the sections. The progress is less than a third of what it should have been. As every month goes by, you can add a mont to the eventual completion date. It's slipping back all the time. In normal circumstances it would be reasonable to expect the project to be finished by 2012, but because of the dispute with Bilfinger it looks highly unlikely."

Edinburgh City council could face a legal battle with the company contracted to build its new tram system, the city’s transport convener said today. Councillor Gordon Mackenzie said the disputes with German firm Bilfinger Berger must be resolved within the month or the contract may be torn up. But terminating the contract could lead to a lengthy court battle and further delays to the project.

The disputes centre on issues including project cost, timescale and changes to the route design. Mr Mackenzie said: "This city will not be held to ransom by this contractor any longer. There needs to be a move to settle the project's contractual dispute within the month. There would be worse things for the project than for this contract to be terminated."

TRANSPORT leaders in Scotland's capital have admitted they will have to find extra money to fund the troubled tram project as it emerged the final bill is set to hit £600 million. Officials have conceded they may have to drastically cut back the length of the proposed route from the city's airport amid growing concern about the impact of a long-running dispute with a major contractor.

Legal wrangling has led to work grinding to a halt along most sections of the route. More than £350m had been spent on the ill-fated project by the spring of this year and, by next March, this figure is expected to have shot up to £480m. Completion of the project is almost certain to be delayed until 2013 at the earliest, two years later than planned.

EDINBURGH'S trams may start running as early as next year under plans to roll out the scheme in phases despite the city facing a funding black hole of almost £85 million. Transport leaders in the city believe an initial phase linking Edinburgh Airport and Haymarket railway station could be completed by the end of 2011.

Even if a contractor it has been at loggerheads with is dropped from the project, they believe the first phase could be completed next year. Finishing the first part of the tram network at Haymarket may even be agreed between the city council's tram firm TIE and the German outfit Bilfinger Berger as part of any "divorce settlement".

Edinburgh tram bosses have been forced to deny reports the project is to be cancelled outright. The denial was issued by Edinburgh trams on Wednesday morning, after rumours began circulating on social networking site Twitter.

At around 9am, a user of the social networking site calling himself Tanepiper tweeted: “Just heard from my sources - Edinburgh trams officially cancelled. Will be announced to media later today.” His message was quickly retweeted by dozens of others, prompting a discussion about the future of the troubled project. However, an hour later, the project’s bosses issued their own online denial, using Facebook and Twitter to hit back at what they described as the “tram rumour mill”.

CITY leaders say they expect a "mature divorce" over the Edinburgh tram project after an improvement in relations with contractors Bilfinger Berger. A deal to bring the tram dispute to an end is expected to be on the table within days, it emerged today.

German contractor Bilfinger Berger is set to provide a full breakdown of the costs and timescales involved in the project by the end of this week. Tram bosses - who had hoped to receive the proposal in time for a TIE board meeting yesterday - admitted that the time that the process is taking is a "considerable frustration".

FEARS of further delays and cost increases on Edinburgh's tram project were voiced today amid claims that thousands of underground pipes and cables still have to be moved. Sources close to the project were today quoted saying that as many as 3,000 water, gas, electricity and phone cables underneath Shandwick Place had yet to be re-routed before tracks could be laid.

And one MSP warned the extra preparatory work could mean yet another cost rise for an "out of control" project. But city transport leader Gordon Mackenzie said the 3,000 figure was a list of what was there, not a list of what had to be moved. And he insisted the work had been allowed for in existing schedules and should not lead to further delay.