Strategy in place to cope with over a million Commonwealth spectators, athletes and staff
Plans revealed to keep city moving in 2022 Games
AMAJOR transport strategy to cope with over a million visitors during the Commonwealth Games in 2022 have been revealed.
The plan sets out the major infrastructure projects that are set to be delivered before the Games, including metro extensions, Sprint bus lanes and upgrades to several railway stations.
It outlines how extra capacity will be built into the network in the form of extra park and ride spaces and shuttle buses, to ensure that there is little disruption to residents during the Games, while also detailing how a Regional Transport Coordination Centre will monitor the entire network and roads during the Games.
More than 12,000 athletes, 41,000 staff and over one million spectators are expected to visit the West Midlands during the Games, with around £400 million expected to be spent across the network over the next three years.
But, speaking ahead of the release of the plan, director of network resilience Anne Shaw said that she was not concerned by the amount of work planned across rail and road between now and 2022.
“This is a really important step in terms of our transport planning for the Commonwealth Games, we need
Key infrastructure improvements to be ready for 2022 and leaving a lasting transport legacy include:
A34 and A38 cycle highways Metro Westside extension along Broad Street to Edgbaston Five
Ways
New transport hub, including bus and rail stations at Perry Barr
University, Coventry, Wolverhampton, rail station rebuilds and upgrades
The first phase of three Sprint rapid bus routes from Birmingham City Centre along A34 to Alexander Stadium, along A45 to the NEC and through Aston, to Pipe Hayes
Investment in roads, including key junctions, to reduce congestion and improve safety
to make sure that we’re doing all the right things to keep the region moving so that’s all the business as usual, both for residents and businesses,” she said. “And it’s about combining that with accommodating all those athletes that will be here to compete and all those visitors that will be here in this region.
“We’ve got a lot of capital investment that’s going into our transport infrastructure and we’re making sure that we’re coordinating the delivery of that with all our delivery partners, whether that’s Birmingham City Council or Highways England, we’re working together to minimise the impact of all that construction work as it goes forward. I think we have to be making sure we work closely with all our partners to ensure that everything is delivered in time.”
The draft plan is set to go before the board of the West Midlands Combined Authority next Friday, where it will be voted on ahead of a 12-week public consultation.
Ian Reid, chief executive of Birmingham 2022 added: “The draft Games Strategic Transport Plan is an important document for Birmingham 2022, for the partners we are working closely with and for residents of the host city and region.
“It not only sets out how we will work with our partners to ensure that key groups such as athletes, spectators, officials and media will get to each venue on time but it also demonstrates our focus on minimising the impact that the Games will have on local people and businesses across the host city and region during that short period in July and August 2022.
“I’d encourage people from across the West Midlands to take a look at the plan and provide their feedback on our suggested approach.
“That way we can make sure that their views are taken on board when the detailed planning work for Games time transport begins.”