First bridge installed for Wednesbury to Brierley Hill Metro extension

The first bridge has been installed for the Wednesbury to Brierley Hill Metro extension.

Sections of the Tame Valley, Walsall and Old Main Line Canal were closed periodically in autumn and winter to allow for the demolition of ageing bridges.

Earlier this week the first new bridge was installed over the Walsall Canal in Wednesbury which has been purpose built to meet the needs of a modern tramway.

Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands, joined Cllr Jackie Taylor of Sandwell Council, James Dennison, enterprise manager for the Canal & River Trust in the West Midlands and Ian Collins, Midland Metro Alliance project director to mark the milestone.

Street said: “The largest light rail extension being delivered anywhere in the UK, the Wednesbury to Brierley Hill Metro extension will be a complete game-changer for the region. Not only is it providing good quality construction jobs for local workers at a critical time, but it’ll also finally re-connect communities in Dudley and Sandwell that have been cut off from the wider transport network for far too long.”

Ian Collins, from the Midland Metro Alliance, which is designing, planning and building a number of Metro routes on behalf of behalf of Transport for West Midlands, said: “Much of the activity to complete designs, remove the old structure and fabricate a new one has taken place during the pandemic.  Some really fantastic work has taken place during some really challenging times.  On behalf of the Midland Metro Alliance I would like to thank everyone involved who has helped us safely get to this point, whilst continuing to minimise disruption wherever possible.”