The Midland Metro will be partially closed for four days in April to allow for the completion of a £400,000 maintenance project.
The line between Wolverhampton St George’s and Wednesbury Parkway will be affected by the closure between April 17-20 inclusive. Trams will continue to operate as normal between Wednesbury Parkway and Birmingham Snow Hill.
The work is to enhance the service for passengers and maintain the tram system’s 99% reliability. It is the continuation of a project begun last October by transport authority Centro and operator Travel Midland Metro, where similar work was undertaken between Birmingham Snow Hill and Wednesbury Great Western Street.
It will see enhancement work to the overhead cables, which will give them a life span of up to 30 years and require less maintenance than the existing lines installed more than a decade ago.
Sophie Allison, Metro Partnerships Manager at Centro, said: “The tram system is already the West Midlands most reliable mode of transport, and the overhead line upgrade will help us to make sure it maintains its great record of almost 100 per cent reliability in to the future.
“Unfortunately it will be necessary to close the tram system in part over a four day period to upgrade the overhead lines. We apologise for any disruption but this is the best way for us to get the work done. Doing it in any other way would take significantly longer and cause more disruption to passengers over an extended period.”
Passengers travelling to destinations between Wolverhampton St George’s and Wednesbury Parkway will be able to use Midland Metro tickets and passes on the National Express West Midlands (NXWM) 79 and 126 bus services during the closure period. NXWM Daysaver tickets issued on the 79 and 126 will also be valid on the Metro.
However Metro and Metro/bus tickets are not valid on the rail network.
In a separate project, CCTV and the communications system used on the Metro network is receiving a £500,000 upgrade which will come into operation in early April.
This includes providing passengers with an improved information announcement and display system and enhanced help points at stops including Braille lettering for the blind and visually impaired. It will also update the CCTV control systems along the line and improve passenger information points.
Sophie said: “Passengers can be assured that the level of investment in these two programmes is proof of our determination to maintain the extremely high levels of reliability and security on the Midland Metro in the future.
“The enhancement work will make the lines more robust so they are less likely to require ongoing maintenance work, reducing the risk of delays on the tram system for passengers, while improvements to the CCTV and communications systems means people will get better information and feel safer when they use the network.”
