The bidding process has opened for contractors hoping to win the contract to design and build a new tram and bus station at Dudley in the West Midlands.
Transport for West Midlands has opened the process for the £24.5 million project, which will involve the redevelopment of the site of the existing bus station with a link to the extension of the Midlands Metro tram extension.
It is hoped work will commence in early 2022, before when the successful bidders will be preparing their plant tool hire to help undertake the job. Both the new interchange station and the extension of the tram network from Wednesbury to Brierley Hill via Dudley are due to be completed in 2023.
Bidders will have until June 4th to submit their bids for the project, with a pre-tender briefing being planned for May 11th.
Dudley has not been served by any public transport other than buses since the town’s railway station became a victim of the 1960s Beeching Cuts. The line, which will be adapted for trams, still exists and has been used for goods traffic.
The extension will include 17 new stops, which will include the bus station and a stop at the foot of Castle Hill for the nearby tourist attractions of Dudley Zoo and Castle. It may provide a much-needed boost to the town centre after many years of decline, while also linking to the Merry Hill Shopping Centre.
After starting as a single line from Wolverhampton to central Birmingham via West Bromwich, the Midlands Metro system is now undergoing a major expansion programme, with several extensions either underway or planned.
In addition to the Dudley extension, other new sections include a connection across Wolverhampton city centre to the main railway station, across Birmingham city centre into Edgbaston and an eastern extension that will link up with Birmingham’s Curzon Street and Interchange HS2 stations, plus Birmingham Airport.