Coming hot on the heels of the previous disruption, Sunday 10th March saw further delays for passengers on the West Midlands Metro with overhead problems seen between Priestfield and Wednesbury Parkway causing shuttle services to operate until repairs could be undertaken.
Again it seems that the overhead came down in this location for reasons unknown and when this was discovered a revised tram service operated between Grand Central and Wednesbury Parkway (usual service frequency) and then a shuttle between Wednesbury Parkway and Priestfield and from Priestfield to Wolverhampton St George’s. This was until 2000 when the service was stopped completely between Wednesbury Parkway and Wolverhampton to allow the repairs to take place. Fortunately the damage this time wasn’t as severe as the previous incident with a normal service able to resume from the start of service on Monday 11th March.
Meanwhile further details have now emerged of the previous overhead down incident with it confirmed that 33 was the tram which managed to pull the overhead down at Jewellery Quarter. This caused major damage not only to the overhead and supports – which took two days to repairs – but also to the tram which remained stricken on location until Wednesday 6th March. With its pantograph severely damaged the tram was towed back to depot at low speed by 27 with the repairs on the overhead being completed and eventual service resuming on Thursday 7th March.
In torrential rain 27 pulls 33 into Wednesbury Parkway.
A close-up of the damaged pantograph on 33.
Repairs underway on the damaged overhead. (All Photographs by Andy Walters, 6th March 2019)