Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin has approved plans for an £18 million tram extension project in Wolverhampton.

The Midland Metro scheme forms part of a wider £120m redevelopment in the city centre and is due to be completed in 2019.

The project will be carried out by the transport arm of West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), Transport for West Midlands (TfWM), in partnership with the city council and Neptune Developments.

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The route will take trams along Pipers Row, stopping directly outside the bus station before continuing on to the railway station which will also be redeveloped as part of the Wolverhampton Interchange Project.

Cllr Roger Lawrence said: "If we are to succeed in revitalising our city then we must have the right transport infrastructure in place to open up new areas for redevelopment and underpin our long term ambitions."

Steve Parry, managing director of Neptune Developments, added: "The announcement is great news for the Wolverhampton Interchange scheme as the Midland Metro extension is the element that will tie the commercial developments and the new bus and railway stations together."

(LM/MH)