A key metro extension linking Birmingham city centre with Edgbaston and the city’s growing Westside area has been given the go-ahead thanks to a multi-million pound funding pledge from the Department for Transport.

Five new stations will be served by up to ten trams an hour at peak when the 2km extension of the Midland Metro, from Grand Central, outside Birmingham New Street station, to Edgbaston opens in March 2021.

The boost from the Department for Transport completes the total £149m funding for the project, with another £84m having already been raised locally through the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), City Council, Greater Birmingham & Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership and others.

On a visit to see the route of the new extension, Transport Minister, Paul Maynard, met with various key figures including Cllr Bob Sleigh OBE, deputy mayor of the West Midlands and Alejandro Moreno, director of the Midland Metro Alliance, the body building the Metro extensions on behalf of the WMCA. Mr Maynard said: 

“Midland Metro is already a success story, with passenger journeys up over 50% in the year since the extension to Grand Central opened in 2016. This new extension will be a further boost to Birmingham businesses, will make travelling to work easier for commuters and will increase access to some of the West Midlands major leisure venues.

“But just as importantly, it will help ease the pressure on the roads as it will provide an alternative for getting in and out of the city centre. This is a vital project and one which we are delighted to be able to support.”

Cllr Sleigh added: "We are delighted that government funding is now in place to help get the Midland Metro extension to Edgbaston built.

"The Metro is a real success story for this region and that will continue as new routes are rolled out over the next few years across Birmingham and the Black Country.

"It is not just these areas that will benefit though as the Metro is key to the WMCA's vision for strategic growth and regeneration across the West Midlands, bringing huge benefits to everyone who lives and works here."

The extension will see new tram stops at the Town Hall, Centenary Square, Brindley Place, and at two further stops either side of the Five Ways roundabout in Edgbaston.

The new route will also offer a direct metro link to Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, the International Convention Centre and Symphony Hall.

Preliminary groundworks started in the summer but now final funding for the scheme has been secured from central government, major project works could be set to get underway within weeks.

To limit the impact on Birmingham’s historic city centre and iconic buildings, parts of the route will be built without overhead lines. Hi-tech batteries fitted to the trams will mean they can run on their own power through these sections.

The DfT is providing £59.8m for the project through the Local Growth Fund - a £12 billion fund to support a variety of projects including transport schemes, new housing and improving education.

WMCA are providing another £59m and the remainder comes from Birmingham City Council, Greater Birmingham Local Growth Fund Pot, Greater Birmingham & Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership and developers.