On the 5th December 2022, we launched our Outline Business case for Midlands Rail Hub. You can watch a full recording of the event here:
The Midlands Rail Hub - our flagship project - is the biggest upgrade of our rail network for a generation.
What is Midlands Rail Hub?
Midlands Rail Hub is the region’s biggest and most ambitious rail improvement scheme - a £900m - £1.5bn blueprint for faster, better and more frequent connections across the Midlands.
Passenger rail usage in the Midlands is growing faster than anywhere else in the UK, but without investment, the region's rail network can't keep pace with this record demand, and many services remain slow and infrequent. Historically, turning rail projects from concept to reality has been a long and frustrating process. We’re keen to break this cycle by securing the future of this project now and planning for its delivery.
The scheme will add more than 14 million more seats on the rail network each year and provide faster, more frequent or new rail links for over 30 locations including: Birmingham, Bromsgrove, Nuneaton, Worcester, Hereford, Cardiff, Bristol, Cheltenham and Leicester. It will also bring 1.6 million more people to within an hour of the region’s biggest towns and cities by public transport.
The Midlands Rail Hub proposes building two ‘chords’ as well as 11 further engineering interventions throughout the region to deliver a massive step change in rail transport in the Midlands.
The West Chord: consists of improvements between Bordesley and Moor Street, allowing access to Birmingham Moor Street from South-West and Wales, and making sure services are improved on the Hereford and Worcester corridors.
The East Chord: creates an access to Birmingham Moor Street from the East Midlands.
Other plans for engineering upgrades include:
The importance of Midlands Rail Hub was also reinforced by the Transport Select Committee’s review in July 2022, emphasising the need for the scheme to be delivered in full.
On the 5th December 2022, we submitted our Outline Business case to the Department for Transport. You can read a summary of this report by clicking here. Subject to funding, the project could begin construction as early as 2025 and be completed by 2030.
Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands