Plans have been submitted for the £200 million Midland Metro extension project.

Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands, and Laura Shoaf, managing director of Transport for West Midlands, have now formally presented the business case for the project to Secretary of State for Transport, Chris Grayling.

The scheme involves building a seven-mile extension of the Metro at the House of Commons.

The new line from Wednesbury to the new DY5 Enterprise Zone at Brierley Hill would see the Metro run through Great Bridge, Horseley Heath, Dudley Port, Dudley town centre, the Waterfront and Merry Hill, before terminating at Brierley Hill town centre.

It is the first of a series of proposed extensions to the route, including extensions to Wolverhampton interchange and the HS2 terminal at Curzon Street in Birmingham.

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Part funding for the development has already been secured from West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) contributions and the Local Growth Fund.

Mayor Street said the business case "shows that for every pound invested in this project, it will return £2.50 for the local economy".

"It is hard to understate just how important this project is to the Black Country," he said.

"It will align employment, education, health and tourism along the corridor, stimulating investment in the Black Country and enabling the building of 50,000 homes and bringing 170 hectares of brownfield land.

"It will also be important for passengers. It will more than halve journey times from some of the stops along the route into central Birmingham."

Cllr Roger Lawrence, lead member for transport for WMCA, added: "This is a major milestone for the Wednesbury-Brierley Hill extension and fantastic news for the people of Dudley, Sandwell and the wider West Midlands.

"Once this link is open it will connect key locations such as Merry Hill and Dudley town centre to the wider transport network for accessing the national rail network and HS2 and, eventually, Birmingham Airport.

"The Midland Metro is key to the WMCA's plans to grow our economy, and this extension will help bring more jobs and greater prosperity not just to the Black Country but across the region as a whole."

Image: Andy Street presents the business case for the extension to Chris Grayling.

(LM/MH)