In this article we return to the next extension to open on the West Midlands Metro – the line out to Dudley which will be phase one of the Wednesbury to Brierley Hill line. Work has been continuing in recent months in the construction of this line and many of the update we have featured have shown what has been going on at the Dudley end of the line but what of the Wednesbury end? Let us find out in this latest update with photos courtesy of Andy Walters.
As many will be aware the line to Dudley and Brierley Hill will be diverging from the original Metro line between Birmingham and Wolverhampton just to the east of the Wednesbury Great Western Street tramstop. This will require the installation of a junction and the focus of this article is on the work which has already been underway in preparation for the connection of the tracks.
Whilst work so far on installing the initial infrastructure for this junction – which look set to be known as Tipton Junction – has not involved disruption to the West Midlands Metro service this is not likely to be the case in the future. Obviously, the current line and the new line will need to be connected and this looks set to involve a line closure at some point this year. More details on this are to follow in due course.
The line to Flood Street, Dudley is slated to open in late 2024.
Wednesbury Depot can just be seen on the extreme right which shows the proximity of the extension to the facility. This view shows the Tipton Junction name.
Another image of the work which has taken place to allow the old and new Metro lines to be connected.
And one further photo showing how the line needs to be elevated. (All Photographs by Andy Walters)