Midland
Metro Line 1 was opened in 1999,
predominantly using the alignment of the former Great Western Railway
between
Birmingham Snow Hill and Wolverhampton, a route which originally
continued to Birkenhead. Line 1 was chosen because it was the easiest
to build, and was
originally to be the first of up to 15 lines.
The original plans were to then build Line 2,
from
Central Birmingham to the NEC and Airport (including a city centre
extension to Line 1, on which a consultation was held in 1999), and
Line 3, from Wolverhampton through Willenhall
and Walsall, crossing Line 1 in Wednesbury, then down to Dudley, Merry
Hill and Brierley Hill. A lack of funding cut this down to sections
from Birmingham Snow Hill to Edgbaston Shopping Centre, Wednesbury to
Brierley Hill and the Wolverhampton Loop (now abandoned for the time
being).
Original
proposals - Line 1 to be followed by lines 2 and
3
New
"bite sized" plans (1999) - part of line 2 and half
of line 3
However, funding from government proved
elusive, and the costs of light
rail development skyrocketed during the early 2000s - not helped by
Line 1's difficult birth and a sharp rise in operating costs. The
Department for Transport has repeatedly refused funding for further
Midland Metro
extensions, and that the existing plans were cut down to aid
affordability, and in the light of this, the full extents of Lines 2
and 3 were abandoned in favour of the bite-sized approach shown above.
The powers for Lines 2 and 3 lapsed (they are only valid for five years
from when given).
Centro's
(West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive) approach was based on
identifying the busiest transport corridors in the West Midlands, and
this was distilled into a plan for five lines. Amid a storm including
the emergence of proposals for an Underground system, the Department
for Transport again refused any further funding for Midland Metro in
2003, suggesting that the West Midlands' bus
network was more than adequate for moving the numbers of people
proposed. This ignored the rebuilding of Birmingham City Centre, which
is reducing bus capacity and making bus operation increasingly
difficult. The showpiece "bus mall" on Moor Street was
originally meant to be part of a system of public transport
improvements, including trams, but the existing level of bus traffic
has rendered it inoperable, and having opened in October 2003, it was
shut within a month, and remains so in mid 2004.
Midland
Metro line proposals in 2002
(empty)
Centro's original bite-sized approach
was
designed to make the system more affordable, by spending in smaller,
more manageable chunks to extend lines. However, government seems to be
at odds with this view, and cites Manchester Metrolink's approach,
which was to collect a number of complete lines (after one "bite-sized"
style extension to Eccles) into a "big bang" package.
The reasons why a
big bang package appears to be preferred aren't just down to government
preferences - it works out cheaper per line kilometre as the
contractors can be employed on a known medium to long term scheme,
instead of continually starting and stopping, and there is a lot more
certainty over the fate of individual lines. However, there is wisdom
in the West Midlands' approach, as were it down to them to fund Metro,
this would be a more suitable solution in terms of funding. In addition
to the higher construction cost, the costs associated with individual
sets of planning applications and Transport & Works Acts for each
extension show the system is not geared up to meeting that approach.
Centro has now effectively decided to collect their current extension proposals
into a "big bang" scheme.
The former Director general of Centro, Bob
Tarr, has written about Centro's failings on Metro in his article - Second
city bungles city transport
"Bite-sized"
development
