UK Department for Transport announced that EUR 64.89 million will be allotted to the tram extension linking Birmingham city centre with Edgbaston and the city’s growing Westside area.
The boost from the Department for Transport completes the total EUR 161.66 million funding for the project, with another EUR 91.14 million having already been raised locally through the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), City Council, Greater Birmingham & Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership and others.
Five new tram stops will be served by up to ten trams an hour at peak when the 2km extension of Midland Metro, from Grand Central, outside Birmingham New Street station, to Edgbaston opens in 2021.
“Midland Metro is already a success story, with passenger journeys up nearly a third this year compared to last year. This new extension will be a further boost to Birmingham businesses, and make travelling to work easier for commuters. But just as importantly, it will help ease the pressure on the roads as it will provide an alternative for getting in and out of the city centre. This is a vital project and one which we are delighted to be able to support,” Transport Minister Paul Maynard said.
The extension will see new tram stops at the Town Hall, Centenary Square, Brindley Place, and at two further stops either side of the Five Ways roundabout in Edgbaston.
The new route will also offer a direct link by tram to Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, the International Convention Centre and Symphony Hall.
Preliminary groundworks started in the summer but now final funding for the scheme has been secured from central government, major project works could be set to get underway within weeks.
Between June 2016 and May 2017 there were 6.2 million passenger journeys on Midland Metro, a rise of 29% compared to the previous year.
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