Man v. Edinburgh trams the race

Watch as a cyclist who raced one of the first trams reached the city centre almost 10 minutes earlier.

Stuart Wallace, 41, left the airport at the same time as the 8am service. He took 29 minutes to reach St Andrew Square.

However, our reporter riding on the tram took 39 minutes.

Stuart said: “This doesn’t say too much for how quick and efficient the tram is in getting passengers from A to B.

“I followed the designated cycle paths before taking to the road as I approached Princes Street.

“With me beating the tram so comfortably, it now lags behind bikes, taxis and buses in terms of completing the journey from the airport.”

The tramline travels past the Gyle Centre, Edinburgh Park Station and Murrayfield a far longer route than that of the more direct option offered by those travelling along the A8.

However, the comfort on board the new service cannot be overlooked.

There is plenty of space for both seated and standing passengers, with berths available for wheelchair users and visually impaired customers travelling with a guide dog.

The seats are leather, and at no point yesterday morning bar the launch journey did any tram seem full.