In Pictures: 30 back in service and 50 being tested on West Midlands Metro

Article updated 5/6/25 with 50 returning to service.

Over the past few months there seems to have been a very concerted effort by the West Midlands Metro to get more and more trams operational again. Although a normal day only requires 16 trams in service, and they have a complete fleet of 42 (even if some are long-term out of use), a number of trams have returned to action recently, or are being tested ahead of a return.

30 – one of the original batch of CAF Urbos3 trams built 2013-15 – had only recently been at Dudley for repairs but just a few weeks after it came back it was being prepared for a return to action. This duly happened bythe end of May 2025 with it having been used on several occasions since.

It follows 21, 28 and 36 (the last of which received an advert soon after it came back into use) as having re-emtered service in recent weeks.

All of those are Urbos3 but another long-term absentee which looks set to be back in service fairly soon is one of the later Urbos100s – 50.

Delivered on 31^st May 2023 and entering service on 15^th July 2023, 50 has been out of service since late on 7^th October 2024 when it was hit by a car at the Bilston Road Island in Wolverhampton. The tram was derailed and after rerailing was returned to depot where its firstly been under assessment and then latterly repair.

As part of its recommissioning process it was seen back out on the line under test on 3^rd June 2025 and with any luck it shouldn’t be too long before its running in service once again.

Update 5/6/25. 50 returned to service on Thursday 5th June, just two days short of a full eight months since it was last seen carrying passengers.

30 arrives at The Royal with a service heading towards Birmingham. (Photograph by Dan Noon, 2nd June 2025 – ignore the timestamp its wrong!)

50 heads away from Bilston Central when out on test, some of its first moves under its own power on the main line for almost eight months. (Photograph by Shiv Patel, 3rd June 2025)

In heavy rain, 50 departs from Piper’s Row on the last leg of its journey from Edgbaston Village to Wolverhampton Station. (Photograph by John Binch, 5th June 2025)

Another tram set to return to service soon is 37. The tram is seen here using the crossover at Priestfield during testing. (Photograph by Andy Walters, 5th June 2025)