It's been a while, but we are continuing on from part 1 during my stay in Scotland...
We continue where we left off. Exiting Edinburgh Waverley station, and entering out into the city centre of Edinburgh, I was greeted by people walking in both directions along the pavement... so yeah. Felt like being in Central London. Also the litter bins managed to be packed full, even pavements contained lines of bin bags. Slightly confusing at first, but I found out that a bin strike took place during my visit - you really had to watch where to walk. Not particularly great for visitors, as that gives a bad impression of the city (from their opinion) being the capital city of Scotland. I had to navigate (using the Citymapper app) where the bus stop was, after walking I eventually got to the bus stop and waited for one of the specified routes listed, until it took me to the area I would be staying in. Didn't take too long - only about 20 minutes.
Now, you may be wondering - what is the main way of travelling around Edinburgh? Pretty much by bus. The operator in question being Lothian Buses run by Transport For Edinburgh - for reference think of Transport For London (TFL) that operates London Buses, trams, tube etc. These are branded as:
Lothian Buses
Lothian Country
EastCoastbuses
Airlink and Skylink (Airport services)
Lothian Buses
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| Lothian Buses 613, (SJ21MYP) at Cameron Toll on route 3 towards Clovenstone. Bus model seen in this photo: Alexander Dennis Enviro 400 MMC |
Most of the time, you will see alot of these normal branded Lothian Buses services using the colour brown. There are many routes which go via Edinburgh City Centre (bar a few that don't), some of the vehicles I saw were branded as Lothiancity.
Lothian Country
Lothian Country routes travel outside of Edinburgh with some numbered as express routes. These go a much longer distance into the countryside and different areas. Branded green, not too many are around the network - only a small handful.
EastCoastbuses
EastCoastbuses routes go East from Edinburgh (well, some) into other areas and like the country routes, they head quite far out.
Airlink and Skylink (Airport bus services)
Finally the airport services. One Airlink and two Skylinks. Route 100 (Airlink) and Routes 200/400 (both Skylink) all operate services to Edinburgh Airport. They all head their own way, with the 100 being the only route going to Edinburgh City Centre. There used to be a route called Skylink 300 until (as of typing) it got withdrawn recently on the 11th of September 2022.
The buses operating in the area are low-floor, with single doors (very common outside London) as well as a second exit door in the middle (like London) depending on the route and it's usage. What I found interesting was this. From what I have seen/observed, buses in Edinburgh let people off first before picking the other people at that bus stop in a form of a queue. People also queue in a orderly fashion as well which is pretty quirky if you ask me. You could argue, that waiting for your bus to come at that bus stop, while passengers are alighting/boarding from the previous bus in front, is pointless and time-consuming, meaning it could lead to a backlog and congestion along the roads. Yes, that's true, but it's sometimes good to be different.
Trams
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| A CAF Urbos 3 Tram seen in Princes Street, Edinburgh City Centre on a service towards the last stop - St Andrew's Square. |
Additionally you have the tram network which is also part of Lothian, with it containing the same livery used on the day Lothian Buses routes. It runs from St Andrew's Square to Edinburgh Airport serving 15 stops in total. The tram allocated, is named Urbos 3 built by CAF in Spain between 2009-2011. They entered service in May 2014, reintroducing (since 1956) the tram network to Edinburgh's streets despite being delayed numerous times. Currently, there is an extension (under construction) taking place, the route is being extended from St Andrew's Square to Newhaven adding 8 stops to the network when operation commences. It is on track for 2023* as of typing this post. Now, I haven't been the route myself as I am yet to ride a tram at all, considering the route is not long looking at the map - one day maybe...
*Edit: As of Wednesday 7th of June 2023, the route was extended from York Place (now replaced by Picardy Place) to Newhaven.
Payment for both transport modes
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| Lothian Buses 1027, (LXZ5408) at Princes Street, Edinburgh City Centre on route 4 towards Hillend, Midlothian Snowsports Centre. Previously VW1864, BF60VHP under Metroline before being reregistered. Bus model seen in this photo: Wrightbus Eclipse Gemini 2 |
On the buses, you can pay using a ticket or contactless. There are different tickets for the day, night or even the whole week. Otherwise, pay using cash or download the app for getting them. If you can't be asked/bothered doing this then use your contactless card, this is known by Lothian Buses as TapTapCap, which caps you depending on how many buses made on that day or journey. For trams, contactless is not accepted and a ticket must be purchased before boarding.
Link to bus ticketing: https://www.lothianbuses.com/tickets/
Link to tram ticketing: https://edinburghtrams.com/tickets/ticket-options
Day 2 - Friday 26th August 2022.
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| Timetable of the local routes I used at the nearest stop during my stay, Lady Road. |
After a restful night's sleep and some breakfast, I got changed and ventured outside. The area I stayed in was called Cameron Toll, which I have say is very well connected, in terms of bus routes and even contains a shopping centre not too far away. I had a handful of local routes that go via Edinburgh City Centre, these are 3, 7, 8, 29, 31, 37 and 47. I will list along with the colour (seen online with the network maps) where they go below;
3: Mayfield to Clovenstone via Dalkeith - Gilmerton - Nether Liberton - Edinburgh City Centre - Haymarket Station, Dalry - Gorgie - Saughton and Sighthill.
7: Edinburgh Royal Infirmary to Newhaven, Craighall Road via Gilmerton - Gracemount - Liberton - Nether Liberton - Edinburgh City Centre and Leith.
8: Edinburgh Royal Infirmary to Muirhouse via Moredun - The Inch - Nether Liberton - Edinburgh City Centre - Inverleith and Wardie.
29: Birkenside to Sliverknowes via Gorebridge - Gowkshill - Newtongrange - Eskbank Tesco - Gilmerton - The Inch - Nether Liberton - Edinburgh City Centre - Western General Hospital and Drylaw.
31: Bonnyrigg or Polton Mill to East Craigs via Gracemount - Liberton - Nether Liberton - Edinburgh City Centre - Corstorphine and Maybury.
47: Penicuik Ladywood to Granton Harbour via Penicuik Town Centre - Bliston - Straiton - Gracemount - Liberton - Nether Liberton - Edinburgh City Centre - Craigleith and Pliton.
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| A view of the area, Cameron Toll, on a very grey morning. |
Apart from route 8 which is allocated Wrightbus Eclipse Gemini 2s, the others generally use Alexander Dennis Enviro 400 MMCS/XLBS - all double deck vehicles. Some routes also use Wrightbus Eclipse Gemini 3s too if necessary on some days. The frequency is every 15-20 minutes depending on whether you are waiting for a specific route, however if boarding any bus towards the City Centre for example, then it is timed to ensure that one can reach the rail terminus, or connect with bus routes heading towards other destinations. Really, no longer than around 8-10 minutes waiting. The buses are frequent.
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| Lothian Buses 1110, (SJ19OYY) at National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh City Centre on route 31 towards East Craigs. Bus model seen in this photo: Alexander Dennis Enviro 400 XLB |
A short wait and route 31 appeared using one of the longer Alexander Dennis models (the Enviro 400 XLB). Introduced in 2019 and being 13.4m long, this decker seats up to 100 people (61 on the upper deck, 39 on the lower deck) with high backed seats, USB chargers and wood effect flooring. I felt rather surprised at how long the bus was, at the same time impressed with the amount of seats onboard - being a 3-axle vehicle. To top it off, double doors as well speeding up loading/unloading. Can't ask for much more really. Oh wait... next stop announcements. Good stuff. It took roughly 20 minutes to reach the city centre, I got off at the National Museum of Scotland to see what I could do next.
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| At the National Museum of Scotland bus stop. |
Well, I was in the City Centre and ahead I could see a tour bus (those that are eagle-eyed may be able to see it in this photo) which got me thinking "Why not have a tour of the city?" As the bus came (thankfully it stopped where I was standing) I asked the driver how much the tour was. Said £10, "worth it" I thought in my head. I got given a receipt and was told that I could ride on the bus as many times as I wish since it's valid for 24 hours. Went upstairs while the bus made it's way to Lawnmarket, where it starts and paused for a little bit. It seemed very busy when I travelled, loads of people walking left and right. The tour I would be taking is called Cobbles Tour named after the Scottish Terrier and is also the mascot. It commenced operation in April 2022, being fairly new to the bus tour operation in Edinburgh. Incase anyone wants to know the bus type I rode, it was a Wrightbus Eclipse Gemini 3. You're welcome.
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| Edinburgh Castle, seen ahead. |
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| Grassmarket. Also another tour bus for Bright Bus Tours, doing the City Tour. |
Departing away from Lawnmarket, there was a tall church which appeared in front of us. At the mini roundabout, we took the first left onto Johnston Terrace, travelling around Edinburgh Castle consisting of interesting rock structures - otherwise just trees. The next bit involved taking two left turns, the second being tight at first, though the road managed to spread out as we approached Grassmarket, picking up more people. Evidence of the Edinburgh bin strike seemed to be evident here, with the amount of rubbish on pavements and bins/litter bins overloading everywhere - bet the aroma is not pleasant to be in for sure, let alone walking in it (ohhh boy, trust me, had to do alot during this visit, not fun at all while walking past among large crowds of people, honestly a playground for the seagulls and pigeons.) Bear in mind this is only one part of the town...
Above: In the University of Edinburgh area about to complete the loop around.
Digressing on, we head uphill on another tight road until making the right turn, leading to more mini shops turning into a one way road - turning right passing the University of Edinburgh area. Turns out we did a loop, backtracking to where we came from even seeing Lawnmarket! (Our starting stop, remember?) Continuing straight, the view became panoramic, as we passed through a museum and a glimpse of the thriving high street.
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A nice view ahead appeared, while making a left turn on George Street, really another bog-standard mini shops and similar buildings sort of road, with statues provided in between while passing through other roads - each being different to one another. The loop around Charlotte Square allowed us a chance to observe the area briefly, before turning right and left onto once again, a long stretch of similar road we did at George Street. A right turn leads us to St Andrews Square, which featured some sort of event taking place judging by the crowds. The Airlink 100 bus route terminus made itself known, standing next to a TK Maxx shop.
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| St Andrews Square |
We took a left to the main high street, passing under tram lines at first until shortly disappearing, as for us we soldiered on passing Edinburgh Waverley station, escaping the hustle and bustle. From here, a rather scenic view of the hills popped up making the scene feel very picturesque. It seemed like we were heading away from the city at this point, however eventually we made a right turn, on a road passing underneath a railway bridge used by local/intercity train services, which turned out to be the East Coast Main Line funnily enough, where I came from London using LNER! (London North Eastern Railway) This felt like the only bit of the route, where we went through residential housing for a second, well, in my opinion anyways.
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| The view ahead, on Princes Street. |
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| Approaching the hills. |
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| View of hills. |
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| The Scottish Parliament building. |
The Scottish Parliament building made itself known (last photo above - with the hill in the background) navigating the roundabout, until the recognisable brickwork and cobbled streets of Edinburgh appeared along this road known as the Royal Mile, the space on the roads getting closer and tighter to the City Centre, which our partially open top bus travelled through, albeit with alot of shaking. The left turn to South Bridge road is very familiar to me, as while we turned I looked at the North Bridge road on the right (was partially one way at the time of post due to roadworks), where I walked from Edinburgh Waverley station upon my arrival, to get one of my local bus routes back to the hotel, seen at one of the bus stops further down.
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| Heading back towards the City Centre in the Royal Mile area. |
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| Near the heart of Edinburgh City Centre. |
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| This is one-way North Bridge road I referred to, as we turned left onto South Bridge road. |
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| Lothian Buses 378, (SN11ECY) in Edinburgh City Centre on route 14 towards Granton. In this direction, it usually goes to Muirhouse. Bus model seen in this photo: Wrightbus Eclipse Gemini 2 |
The emergence of the National Museum of Scotland ultimately meant I was at the end of the tour, as this is where I hopped on. An hour later, the Cobbles Tour of Edinburgh concluded, I really enjoyed the trip and loved the scenery along the way. Throughout the journey passengers got on and off, as well as the roads being packed out with traffic and pedestrians, music being played on the streets, shops, bars and cafes filled up - gives you that proper feeling of being in the city for sure. I was also offered headphones by the friendly driver, as the commentary became informative along the way and provided many facts and stories - pretty much what you would expect on a tour bus. Okay, I confess. Admittedly, I stayed on again as I wanted to get pictures from a better view, although this "went well" as the Scottish rain finally made it's appearance by the time I reached the station, so I alighted at this point. I know, what a waste. I am glad I sat in the sheltered bit of the open top bus, the other passengers that didn't, probably got soaked and felt a bit cold too. As some sort of consolation, (heh, yeah, "some sort", the rain said "hey!" going all dark around me and decided to do it, as I was almost halfway - sitting at the front as well!!!) I hanged around a bit taking photos of the sights around Edinburgh, then walking to the bus stop to get my bus back to the hotel - route 31 again with the same bus type (Enviro 400 XLB, yeah that long bus containing many seats!) to reflect on what day it had been.
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| Edinburgh Bus Tours 232, SJ16CTU dropped me off at Waterloo Place (not too far from the City) when the rain started to batter down. Bus model seen in this photo: Wrightbus Eclipse Gemini 3 |
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| The view from Princes Street Gardens. |
Last two photos: Edinburgh City Centre nearby the station.
A lengthy one for sure, but thanks for reading and happy riding - until the next post!
