The Midland Metro began operation between Wolverhampton and Birmingham in 1999 mostly using the former
Birmingham Snow Hill to Wolverhampton Low-Level railway line [1]. Ansaldo Breda built the T-69 tram for the light rail route. They are shorter than other modern light rail trams in the UK being less than twenty five metres long. The trams have three bogies, one under the central articulated section.
| Information |
| Number built: |
16 |
| Built: |
1996-99 |
| Builder: |
Ansaldo Breda |
| Motor: |
4 DC traction motors (750v DC OHLE) |
| Power: |
564 hp (420 kW) |
Despite being less than twenty years old (and indeed having had a refurbishment in 2013 which added LED route indicators) they were withdrawn in 2016, replaced by the current
Urbos 3 tram which have more low-floor accommodation and increased capacity (albeit standing).
They were put into storage for a while but all but three have now been scrapped. Two have been preserved and one has been retained by Midland Metro as a works vehicle. Due to their relative youth there were proposals to re-use them elsewhere including on the Isle of Wight but none of these proposals came to anything.
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| Midland Metro crosses over the Tame Valley Canal |
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| Tram #12 departs Snow Hill |
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| Metro taken from a passing heavy rail train |
[1] Colin J. Marsden (ed.), "Midland Metro", Light Rail (Key Publishing, 2018) p. 62
