Mothballed trams sold for scrap

The mothballed trams

The original Midland Metro tram fleet has reached the end of the line after being sold for scrap.

However, two of the cabs from the 15-strong fleet have been saved from an ignominious end by being found new homes.

Transport for West Midlands had offered the Ansaldo T69 trams for auction at the end of last year, but with no takers it was forced to sell 13 of them for scrap for £12,000.

Of the remainder, one cab, Tram 7, has been donated to UK Tram, the British tram industry body, with the other, Tram 11, heading for Birmingham Museum.

Tram 11 was repainted in the old Birmingham Corporation colours in 2013 to mark the 60th anniversary of the final tram running in the city.

It is named after Cllr Theresa Stewart, the former leader of Birmingham City Council.

Cllr Stewart was Birmingham‘s first female leader, running the city council between 1993 and 1999, going on to serve as its Lord Mayor from 2000-2001.

She was a member of the West Midlands Passenger Transport Authority and played a leading role in persuading the government of the early 1990s to give the go-ahead for the Midland Metro line.

Cllr Stewart said: “I remember very well the meetings in parliament and the campaign to get permission to open the Metro, so I am glad that one of the original trams is to be kept for posterity, they are an important part of the story of public transport in this region.

“When you look at the success of the Midland Metro today it just shows how the campaign to bring back trams was right.
“It is also rather nice to think that I am going into a museum!”

A date for Tram 11 to be moved is yet to be arranged.

The T69 trams were introduced when the Midland Metro line opened between Birmingham Snow Hill station and Wolverhampton city centre in 1998.

However, they were phased out following the introduction in 2014 of the Urbos 3 trams now in use on the network. For the last four years they have been in storage at a depot in Long Marston, Warwickshire.

Cllr Roger Lawrence, WMCA lead member for transport, said: “After many years of service it’s sad the T69 trams are headed for the breakers yard, but in the absence of any buyers for them as a going concern this represents the best return for the council tax payer.

“However, the two trams that are to be preserved will serve as a permanent reminder of the part they played in the story of the Midland Metro.”

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