Editorial
The tram is a promise. Now the city must keep it
The Meridian Daily ·
Monday, 19 October 2026 ·
Page 5
Last night's vote was the easy part. For ten years Harbour City has argued about a tram line; now it has to build one on time, on budget and without ruining the streets it will run through.
The council has promised help for shopkeepers on Canal Road. That help must arrive before the first digger, not after the first closures. A clear timetable for each stretch of the works, published and kept up to date, would do more for trust than any speech.
There will be delays. There always are. What matters is that people are told the truth when plans change, and that the city keeps its eyes on the goal: a faster, cleaner way to cross a city that has outgrown its buses.
The council has promised help for shopkeepers on Canal Road. That help must arrive before the first digger, not after the first closures. A clear timetable for each stretch of the works, published and kept up to date, would do more for trust than any speech.
There will be delays. There always are. What matters is that people are told the truth when plans change, and that the city keeps its eyes on the goal: a faster, cleaner way to cross a city that has outgrown its buses.
