Latest news with #TransportForWestMidlands
BBC News
12 hours ago
- Business
- BBC News
Wednesbury tram depot expansion costs increase by £7.65m
Costs of an expansion to cater for increased tram services at a West Midlands Metro depot have risen by more than £ Midlands Combined Authority bosses have agreed to increase the total budget for the scheme in Wednesbury to £ upgrade was necessary as projects to increase Metro lines across the region continued at a pace, they added that extending the depot would allow for extra stabling for the increased fleet, a new control room, extra workshop and engineering facilities as well as an improved training academy. Current Metro works include the extension of services from Wednesbury to Brierley Hill, with phase one of the scheme expected to completed later this year and phase two launched in is also continuing on the Birmingham Eastside Extension, which will provide links to HS2 at Curzon Street and extension is seen as crucial to unlocking a new line from Digbeth to Birmingham City FC's £3bn Sports Quarter plans in Bordesley as well as going on to serve north Solihull, the airport, NEC and surrounding Arden Cross regeneration zone."The depot improvement works, which include upgrades to power supplies and overhead cables, will future-proof the Metro ahead of further growth of the network," said Jo Shore, from Transport for West added: "We regularly review projects to add additional scope or reflect operational changes."The budget for these works reflects changes in specifications and scope in several areas to improve durability and lifespan as well as a review of wider project costs." This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations. Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
19 hours ago
- BBC News
Further disruption at Birmingham New Street after wires damaged
Continued disruption is expected for some rail passengers travelling through Birmingham New Street, as people were advised to allow plenty of time for their comes after damaged electrical wires meant some lines in and out of the station were blocked on incident was first reported just before 14:00 BST, with delays and cancellations to services continued into the services were running normally on Thursday morning, bosses said, but no trains were able to run between Birmingham New Street and Lichfield Trent Valley (Cross City North line) and rail replacement buses were in operation. A spokesperson for West Midlands Railway said this would be the case "until further notice" while engineers worked to carry out wires were damaged between New Street and Water Orton in Warwickshire, according to post on X by Transport for West Wednesday, Birmingham New Street posted on X that extra staff had been drafted in to help passengers. A post on Network Rail's New Street X account, showed a photo of the damage, with loose cables hanging from a metal gantry. New Street is the busiest railway station outside of London and the damage was affecting services for many operators, National Rail running from or through New Street to cities including London, Manchester, Glasgow and Cardiff were among those affected, as well as many services within the West were warned their trains could be cancelled, delayed by up to three hours or not run for their full route. Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
