The second phase of works on the cross-city Sprint rapid bus route linking Walsall, Birmingham and Solihull is set to get under way later this year.

The first phase, which saw bus lanes, priority junction upgrades and new state-of-the art shelters installed along the route was completed in time to ferry spectators to and from key venues during last summer’s Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Analysis of bus travel data showed that journey times had improved by up to 22% compared to 2019 figures following the completion of phase one.

The second phase, to start later this year, will see further work along the route to complete the infrastructure ready for the introduction of articulated zero-emission buses on a continuous route following completion of phase two works.

They will begin with some work in Birmingham including the upgrade of the Trinity Road and Newtown Middleway junction on the A34 and an extension of the westbound bus lane on the A45. Consultation over these works has launched this week and will run until 24 March, 2023.

A Sprint bus shelter in Birmingham city centre

Aside from these nine new state-of-the-art shelters are to be installed along the route. Later this spring residents and businesses will be updated with new designs for bus lanes and junction upgrades in the Walsall, Solihull and Birmingham City Centre sections of the Sprint route.

Sandeep Shingadia, director of strategic partnerships and delivery integration with Transport for West Midlands, said: “Research shows that more people would get the bus if the services were reliable and frequent – which is why we have designed the Sprint cross-city bus route.

“When complete this will create a single non-stop bus route linking Walsall and Solihull town centres via Birmingham and thanks to the dedicated lanes and priority at junctions passengers will know their bus will get them to their destination on time.” 

Sprint’s second phase is being funded through an £88 million contribution from the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement and developed by Transport for West Midlands (TfWM), which is part of the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA).

To find out more about the latest works and comment visit Birmingham City Council’s Be Heard website.

The project has been developed to make bus a more convenient and attractive alternative to the car and help reduce traffic congestion and contribute towards the #wm2041 target of a net-zero carbon region within two decades. Next year will see the introduction of a fleet of zero-carbon articulated vehicles on the route, part funded from TfWM’s allocation from the Government’s Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) fund.