Edinburgh’s old railways are still carrying people

A railway journey without a train

Edinburgh’s former railways have left more than disconnected bridges. In the north and west of the city, parts of their routes now form a connected network for walking and cycling. The railway has disappeared, but the corridor still helps people move between neighbourhoods.

The council’s core paths plan describes routes towards Newhaven, Granton, Pilton, Trinity and Roseburn. Tracks were removed after railway use ended and the routes gained another purpose. Today’s public path records provide firmer evidence for using those corridors than an old railway line on a historic map alone.

• Edinburgh core paths — North Edinburgh Paths ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-26
• Edinburgh public roads register — R to Z, May 2026 ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-26
• Roseburn Path — public roads register ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-26

The Roseburn corridor

The council identifies Roseburn Path as a cycleway on the former Caledonian railway. Its adopted route runs from Russell Road towards Telford Path at Muttonhole Gate. The register also identifies access links, including those at Balbirnie Place, Wester Coates Terrace and Ravelston Dykes.

Railway construction still shapes the journey. Bridges took the railway over obstacles, while the corridor allowed it to pass through a growing city. Those same works can support a route for people on foot or bicycles long after the trains have stopped.

A former railway is not automatically a public path. Here the council’s adoption record identifies the route being maintained. That gives visitors a specific corridor to follow, rather than permission to explore every adjoining railway structure or piece of land.

• Roseburn Path — public roads register ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-26
• Edinburgh tram extension — city centre route options ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-26

Trinity and the tunnel beneath the road

Farther north, Trinity Path runs south from Trinity Crescent beneath Lennox Row and East Trinity Road. The council’s May 2026 public roads register describes it as an adopted footway and cycleway.

Historic Environment Scotland’s acquired index identifies a nineteenth-century railway tunnel at East Trinity Road. Its place in the modern path network gives the structure a continuing transport role, even though the vehicles using the corridor have changed.

The wider network branches, so a walk need not attempt every former line. Use the council’s route information to choose the section that suits your starting point. This guide does not offer a measured circular walk or claim that all connecting entrances are equally accessible.

• Edinburgh public roads register — R to Z, May 2026 ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-26
• Historic Environment Scotland — East Trinity Road railway tunnel ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-26
• Edinburgh core paths — North Edinburgh Paths ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-26

The route’s future is still being discussed

The Roseburn corridor is also part of Edinburgh’s tram-extension debate. The council describes an option using the path and another using the Orchard Brae corridor. Its material considers how walking, wheeling and cycling could continue alongside a tram route.

These are proposals. Drawings of future bridges or path widths do not describe work already completed. The railway corridor’s past helps explain why it remains attractive for transport planning, but a visitor should use current route notices rather than assume a proposed layout is in place.

• Edinburgh tram extension — city centre route options ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-26

Planning a walk on the public paths

Follow the named public paths and use signed access points. The core paths plan notes that some entrances involve steps or ramps, even where the former railway itself has a relatively level alignment. A flat-looking map is not enough to promise step-free access.

Check council notices and signs for temporary works before setting out, especially if a particular entrance or tunnel is essential to your route. We have not walked these sections or inspected their lighting and surfaces. Share the path considerately with people walking, wheeling and cycling.

For an introduction to the city’s lost railways, one section of Roseburn Path or Trinity Path can be enough. Their interest lies in a route still doing useful work: a nineteenth-century transport corridor has become part of everyday Edinburgh again.

• Edinburgh core paths — North Edinburgh Paths ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-26
• Edinburgh public roads register — R to Z, May 2026 ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-26
• Roseburn Path — public roads register ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-26