West Midlands regional factsheet
Map of Region
People in England want efficient, reliable and safe systems of transport. Of course, local transport problems need local solutions.
The Government is keeping the promise it made in the 10-Year Plan for Transport by giving local authorities £8.4 billion over the next five years to be spent locally on projects identified at a local level.
As part of the settlement, authorities in the West Midlands have been given £146 million for 2001/02, and are expected to receive at least £627 million for the five-year period. In addition the region will benefit from a share of resources for future years that have not yet been definitively allocated. The settlement covers:
- major public transport and road schemes costing over £5 million.
- integrated transport schemes costing under £5m; and
- local road maintenance and bridge strengthening schemes.
Major schemes have earmarked funding, however, local authorities decide which of the other transport schemes identified they fund.
Major schemes in the West Midlands
All have been accepted and will receive Government funding.
West Midlands Hagley Road Bus Showcase - £13.6m
Provides bus lanes without reducing road capacity for cars, bringing improved journey times and reliability. Two key interchanges will also be developed as part of the scheme.
Walsall Integrated Transport Strategy - £18m (PFI)
Particularly focussed on improving bus access to the town centre, the scheme includes provision of bus lanes, bus gates and queue relocation and will bring improved bus journey times and reliability.
West Midlands Outer Circle Bus Showcase - £21.3m
22 key interchanges - between 7 other bus showcase routes, 6 heavy rail lines and Midland Metro line 1 - are included in the scheme. The scheme on the 43km Outer Circle route is likely to attract up to 2000 trips per day which were previously made by car.
Nuneaton Development Project - £5.4m
A package of measures essential for the economic regeneration of the town centre and local economy. The scheme includes bus priority through an Urban Traffic Control system, bus station improvements, cycle lockers and racks in pedestrian areas, radial cycle routes and toucan crossings.
Worcestershire Wyre Piddle Bypass - £5.6m
Bypass of Wyre Piddle and Upper Moor, forming part of the Strategic Highway Network. A junction at George Lane will remove landfill site traffic from Wyre Piddle and minor roads.
The following schemes have been accepted and will receive Government funds subject to:
- the completion of the Statutory approval process, or
- further work on the case, or
- funding being secured from a third party.
West Midlands (Birmingham) - Masshouse Circus - £37m
Replacement of a 1960's junction by an at-grade signalised junction, providing access to the major redevelopment area to the east of the city. The scheme includes completion of the city centre bus mall and a partially segregated bus priority loop around the city centre.
West Midlands (Birmingham) - A38 Northfield Regeneration - £12m
Construction of a dual carriageway with signalised junctions, relieving a busy shopping centre and bringing benefits for cyclists and pedestrians. The scheme allows brownfield site regeneration and a significant reduction in accidents is predicted.
West Midlands (Sandwell) - Owen Street Relief Road - £8.8m
Proposed tunnel, replacing existing level crossing on the mainline between Birmingham and Wolverhampton.
West Midlands (Sandwell) - Cradley Heath Town Centre - £6.3m
The construction of a single carriageway bypass will relieve a narrow overcrowded high street which lies on a committed bus showcase route.
Staffordshire - Biddulph Inner Bypass - £10.5m
The bypass will help to deliver regeneration of the town and improved access to brownfield sites. Conditions for cyclists and pedestrians will be improved by the removal of through traffic from the town centre.
Staffordshire - Rugeley Bypass - £17m
The scheme removes through traffic from Rugeley and enables bus priority measures to be introduced. The bypass opens up development opportunities and offers significant regeneration benefits.
Stoke-on-Trent - Hanley Bentilee Link - £15.4m
The link provides an attractive route into the centre of the Hanley and brings improved accessibility by bus to the Bentilee housing area.
Warwickshire - Barford Bypass - £6.9m
The scheme removes through traffic from the village and discourages traffic from using the High Street and Church Street as an alternative route for Warwick and Leamington Spa.
Warwickshire - Rugby Western Bypass - £20.3m
The scheme provides an alternative route through Rugby that bypasses the town centre and, in particular, the congested gyratory system.
Wolverhampton Centre Access - £15m
Focussing on the development of a multi-modal interchange at Wolverhampton railway station, improving the integration of rail, metro and bus within the town centre.
WM (Birmingham) - Metro Line Birmingham City Centre - £58.2m
A mainly street running route, extending from the current Metro Line 1 terminus through Birmingham City Centre to major new office and leisure developments with good integration possibilities with heavy rail, coach and city centre bus services.
WM (Dudley) - Metro Line Wednesbury-Brierley Hill - £142m
Serving several economic development sites, the Merry Hill shopping Centre and the existing town centres of Dudley and Brierley Hill, considerably improving transport choice in the corridor and helping to tackle congestion.
NB. Figures relate to gross scheme costs
In addition, there are a number of schemes for which we do not yet have sufficient information to form a view. The Government is keen to work with the authorities concerned to assist them in completing the work necessary for each scheme to be evaluated by Government against New Approach to Appraisal (NATA) criteria. The schemes in this category are:
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West Midlands PTE |
Walsall - Stourbridge Rail Improvements |
Integrated transport schemes in the West Midlands
The settlement provide funding for authorities to introduce:
- a number of interchange schemes, such as:
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- rail station improvements at Stoke, Longton, Wellington, Telford Central, Lichfield Trent Valley, Kidderminster, Redditch and Malvern; and
- improvements to taxi ranks in Coventry city centre and its bus hubs.
- up to 18 new, or extended, park and ride schemes. For example, authorities are considering proposals for sites at:
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- Brinsford, Staffordshire;
- two sites in Stoke on Trent;
- Telford, Shropshire;
- Worcester;
- Warwick and Leamington, Warwickshire; and
- Coventry, Birmingham, and Wolverhampton.
- up to 1000 road safety schemes, including:
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- 20mph zones to be developed for every town centre in Shropshire and the Ryeland Street area in Hereford;
- traffic calming measures in Stoke on Trent on London Road and Finstock Road;
- the adoption of school travel plans by over many of Worcestershire's 250 schools, with the implementation of traffic calming, cycle routes and walking buses;
- 30 School Safety Zones in Shropshire, including improvements to signs, lines and crossing facilities;
- Home Zones, including a pilot scheme in Wem in Shropshire.
- up to 370 km of cycle routes and cycle lanes and other measures to encourage cycling, including:
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- new cycle routes in Stoke-on-Trent and Sandwell, Shrewsbury and Telford and Hereford City Centre and a new hospital;
- better cycle parking provision in Longton, Stoke on Trent and at leisure facilities in Ross-on-Wye;
- improved integration with public transport such as cycle parking improvements at railway stations and major bus interchanges in Shropshire; and
- cycle facilities including crossing improvements to the A41 Dudley Road to encourage cycling into Birmingham City Centre.
- up to 60km of footway improvements and pedestrianisation along with other measures to encourage walking such as:
- a Safer Routes to School project at John Masefield High School in Ledbury, Herefordshire;
- Birmingham Safe Routes to Stations Programme, Chapel Ash pedestrian facilities in Wolverhampton, measures to improve pedestrian routes to Leominster bus station;
- footway maintenance schemes throughout Shropshire and town centre schemes in Market Drayton and Bridgnorth to include pedestrian priority and improved pedestrian networks;
- Shrewsbury County Council is seeking to upgr4ade routes linking the town centre, residential ar4eas, public transport facilities and schools to "quality walking routes"; and
- improved mobility arrangements for people with disabilities throughout Shropshire.
Public Transport Schemes
- accessibility schemes, including:
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- the Telford Travelink 'mobility management centre' project, integrating access to taxi, private hire, community transport and conventional bus services;
- improved rural bus services in Shropshire with better passenger waiting facilities in rural areas, including over 60 new shelters;
- the 'Wrekin Connect' rural bus interchange project, opening up new journey opportunities in rural areas; and
- improved access for the disabled in Shrewsbury, and the setting up of Mobility Funds in Shropshire to fund schemes to help those with disabilities.
- a number of improvements to bus transport including 1300km of busways, Quality Bus Corridors, bus lanes and bus priority measures. Examples of bus schemes include:
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- bus Showcase Routes in Walsall and Coventry;
- new Bus Partnerships for example Service 20 between Stoke on Trent City Council, Cheshire County Council, Staffordshire County Council and First PMT to provide better services; further quality partnership routes in Telford building on the success of the town's Redline 44 service, which has seen a growth in patronage of over 30% since its introduction in February 2000;
- bus priority measures and improvements to the Ring Road junctions in Nuneaton;
- extension of the real time passenger information system in Shrewsbury;
- bus focal points in Warwickshire, providing safe, convenient and comfortable facilities in the centre of main urban areas and market towns and at main public transport interchanges;
- improvements to Telford and Shrewsbury bus stations; and
- upgrading bus services to Uttoxeter railway station.
Local Road Improvements
- various local road improvements, including:
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- junction improvements on the A458 at Lye in Dudley;
- improved road layout at Kidderminster railway station to allow buses and coaches better integration with rail and tourist attractions;
- expansion of the Stafford UTC system to incorporate the installation of additional cameras which will feed real-time information on road conditions on to the web;
- up to 400 traffic management measures across the region, including measures in Bridgnorth High Town and Oswestry town centre.
Other important local schemes
- application of the Advance Transport Telematics System in Stoke-on-Trent to two more corridors, providing benefits to local bus movement, reduced delays, reduced air pollution and greater priority to pedestrians, cyclists and buses at signal controlled junctions;
- implementation of Quiet Roads across the county of Worcestershire; and
- an integrated package of measures to improve access to the Rotherwas Industrial Estate including a new access road.
Maintenance schemes
The 5-year LTP settlement provides funding for authorities in the West Midlands to address the maintenance backlog on the regions 30,000 km of roads, and to start restoring the 479 bridges that need strengthening.
