West Midlands Metro trams to return 'within days' as half of fleet fixed

All services were halted on November 13 when cracks were discovered in what was the second time this year faults have led to the fleet being pulled from the tracks.

Almost half of the 21 carriages have now been fixed, with trams set to make a phased return within days.

The announcement comes as West Midlands Mayor Andy Street repeated his apology to passengers for the situation.

In an statement the service said: "A programme of permanent repairs to West Midlands Metro’s tram fleet is progressing well and we are confident that we will be able to start a phased return of service within the next week.

"When services were suspended on November 13 we said that it would be at least four weeks before enough trams were available to sustain a safe, reliable and robust service.

"Currently nearly half the fleet has received permanent repairs and this work is continuing. Several new trams are also entering the final stages of testing required before they can enter passenger service.

"At this stage, we cannot offer an exact date for the return of services, but customers can be assured that we continue to work alongside the tram manufacturer to complete both the repairs and testing process as quickly as possible.

"Once again, we are sorry for the continued inconvenience to customers."

Cracks were first found two years ago and the affected tram was temporarily taken out of service and fixed, but more were spotted in June this year, prompting bosses to launch a full repairs programme.

Mr Street said: “The last four weeks have been incredibly frustrating and disappointing for passengers, and I want to personally apologise to them for the disruption the suspension of the metro service has caused. It has been a totally unacceptable situation, but safety had to be prioritised at all times.

“Now, thanks to the hard work and dedication of the team in our metro depot working around the clock, we expect to resume the running of the Metro within the next week – starting with a phased return between Wolverhampton St George’s and Bull Street.

“The repairs undertaken are substantial and robust, and, with the independent review the West Midlands Combined Authority Board and I ordered already well underway, passengers can have confidence that the trams are safe and we will not see a repeat of a whole service suspension.”