Birmingham 2022 Games transport improvements to cost £170m

Improvements to the West Midlands’ transport network for the 2022 Commonwealth Games will cost a minimum of £170m, a report has revealed.

The money will cover three major improvements to public transport infrastructure in the city and include the rapid bus transit network Sprint , which is forecast to cost £110.1m, and improvements to University Station at a cost of £40m.

Meanwhile, the estimated budget cost for the delivery of the Perry Bar rail station improvements is £18m, and £2.5m has been allocated for the bus interchange upgrade.

A Commonwealth Games Capital Projects report, discussed this week at the West Midlands Combined Authority’s (WMCA) Transport Delivery Committee, said the improvements to the Sprint network will provide three new routes by 2022 – Walsall Town Centre to Birmingham City Centre (A34); Birmingham City Centre to Birmingham Airport and Solihull (A45); and Sutton Coldfield to Birmingham via Langley (SBL).

The proposed routes serve several key destinations and areas of growth across the region including Great Barr, Alexander Stadium, Perry Barr, Yardley, Digbeth, the NEC, and Aston. Each route will also serve the Curzon Street interchange which will provide links to HS2 when the service is operational.

Meanwhile, the report said the new University Station “will be a magnificent flagship station” which will provide “seamless movement”from platform to the QEH / Women’s Hospitals, direct to the University campus via a link bridge over the canal and non-rail user access.

Direct access will be provided to the canal towpath and facilities will be provided for buses, taxis and cyclists.

The delivery of a Regional Transport Coordination Centre (RTCC) is also set to be completed before the Games.

The report said: “The West Midlands RTCC will be a multi-agency operation with a physical focal point providing a unified and common view of the transport network to provide a level of regional coordination needed to support Local Authorities, Emergency Services and transport service providers across the region.

“Its services will be centred around providing the coordinating ‘glue’ in managing all types of unplanned and planned disruptions on the transport network, including more proactive and preventative approaches to reduce levels of disruption.”