West Midlands Metro rolling stock

The West Midlands Metro is a passenger light rail line in the West Midlands conurbation in England, which opened in 1999. Its rolling stock consists of 21 CAF Urbos 3 trams which came into service in 2014/15, replacing the older T-69 trams which had operated the line since 1999.

Urbos 3 & Urbos 100

Urbos 3/Urbos 100
Urbos 3 No.31 on Corporation Street
In service	5 September 2014 – present
Manufacturer	CAF
Built at	Zaragoza, Spain
Replaced	All remaining T69
Constructed	2012–2015 (Urbos 3) 2019–2023 (Urbos 100)
Number built	42
Number in service	39
Formation	5 sections with 4 articulations.[1]
Fleet numbers	17–37 (Urbos 3) 38–58 (Urbos 100)
Capacity	210 (54 seats, 156 standing)[1]
Operators	West Midlands Metro
Lines served	Wolverhampton – Birmingham
Specifications
Car length	32,966 mm (108 ft 1+7⁄8 in)[2]
Width	2.65 m (8 ft 8+3⁄8 in)[1]
Height	3.4 m (11 ft 1+7⁄8 in)
Wheel diameter	590–510 mm (23–20 in) (new–worn)[3]
Maximum speed	70 km/h (43 mph)[1]
Weight	56 tonnes (55 long tons; 62 short tons)
Traction motors	8 × Traktionssysteme Austria TMR 36-18-4 70 kW (90 hp)[4]
Power output	560 kW (750 hp)
Transmission	5.44 : 1 (49 / 9) gear ratio[3]
Electric system(s)	750 V DC from overhead catenary
Current collector(s)	Pantograph
UIC classification	Bo′+2′+Bo′
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge

A new fleet of 21 CAF Urbos 3 trams began to enter service in September 2014, they replaced the old T-69 fleet in 2015.^[5] In February 2012 Centro named CAF the preferred bidder for a contract to supply 19 to 25 Urbos 3 trams.^[6] A £40 million firm order for 20 was subsequently signed, with options for five more.^[7] The first of the new trams was unveiled at the Wednesbury depot in October 2013,^[8] with the first four entering service on 5 September 2014.^[5]

The new fleet provided an increased service of 10 trams per hour in each direction, with an increased capacity of 210 passengers per tram, compared with the 156 passengers on the former T69 trams. The Urbos 3 trams are 33 m (108 ft 3 in) long; 9 m (29 ft 6 in) longer than the former T69 stock, and have a maximum operating speed of 70 km/h (43 mph). They are low floor throughout, and consist of five sections with four articulations. Three of the modules are mounted on bogies and the other two modules are suspended.^[1]

At 2.65 m (8 ft 8+3⁄8 in) wide, The Urbos 3 trams are slightly wider than the 2.48 m (8 ft 1+5⁄8 in) wide T69s. The line was closed for two weeks during March and April 2013, in order for the platforms on each of the stops to be narrowed by 15 cm (5.9 in) to accommodate the new trams. The T69s were modified with wider steps to be compatible with the narrower platforms.^[9]

In 2016, it was announced that the Urbos 3 fleet would be fitted with rechargeable batteries to allow them to operate along various extensions of the Midland Metro network intended to be constructed without overhead lines.^[10] Tram 18 was the first to be fitted with batteries in 2017,^[11] with the final tram, number 26, being fitted by April 2020.^[12] Tram 31 was the first to receive the new blue livery and was relaunched on 16 July 2018.^[13] In May 2019, tram 19 was given a silver and blue livery with special logos to mark the 20th anniversary of the West Midlands Metro on 30 May 2019.^[14] It was given the full blue livery in February 2021.^[15] All trams now carry this livery.^[16]

In October 2019, an order was signed for 21 new Urbos 100 trams, with the option of a further 29.^[17] Eight of these were delivered in 2021, three within 2022, with the remaining 8 being delivered until November 2023.^[18]

Cracks have been detected in the older Urbos 3 trams resulting in suspension of services, the most recent in March 2022. The newer Urbos 100 vehicles are not affected by these bodywork defects.

Key:	Stored	Serving

Fleet number	Tram name	Notes
17		Stored out of service as of 9 August 2023[update].[19]
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26		Out of use between June 2017 and June 2019 following a derailment in the depot.[20] Stored out of service as of 17 August 2023[update].[21]
27
28	Jasper Carrott[22]	Named after the Birmingham born comedian Jasper Carrott on 13 November 2019 at the new Town Hall Tram Stop.[23]
29		Stored out of service as of 21 August 2023[update].[24]
30
31	Cyrille Regis[25]
32
33
34
35		Previously named Angus Adams by Elizabeth II on 19 November 2015.[26][27]
36
37	Ozzy Osbourne	Named by Osbourne on 26 May 2016.[28]
38
39	Don & Roy Richardson	Named by Roy on 2 March 2023[29]
40
41
42
43
44
45		Advert for City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56	Amman Ahmed	Named on 30 September 2024 after a volunteer who won a contest as part of the 50for50WM campaign celebrating 50 years of the West Midlands County[30]
57
58		Advert for Birmingham City University

• 
  Interior of an Urbos 3
• 
  Urbos 3s at the depot in Wednesbury
• 
  Urbos 3 No.35 approaching St Paul's tram stop

Former fleet

T-69

T-69
Tram 05 in original livery at West Bromwich Central
In service	30 May 1999 – 14 August 2015
Manufacturer	AnsaldoBreda
Built at	Naples, Italy
Constructed	1996–1999
Refurbished	2013
Scrapped	2018
Number built	16
Number scrapped	13
Formation	2 sections per tram, articulated intersection
Fleet numbers	01–16
Capacity	156 (56 seats, 100 standing)[31]
Operators	National Express Midland Metro
Lines served	Wolverhampton – Birmingham Snow Hill
Specifications
Car body construction	Aluminium
Car length	24.36 m (79 ft 11 in)[31]
Width	2.48 m (8 ft 1+5⁄8 in)[9]
Height	3.7 m (12 ft 1+5⁄8 in)
Wheel diameter	680–620 mm (27–24 in) (new–worn)[32]
Maximum speed	43.5 mph (70 km/h)
Weight	38 tonnes (37 long tons; 42 short tons) per tram [31]
Traction motors	2 × 210 kW (282 hp) separately-excited DC motor[32]
Power output	420 kW (563 hp)
Electric system(s)	750 V DC from overhead catenary
Current collector(s)	Brecknell Willis high reach pantograph
UIC classification	B′+2′+B′
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in)

Sixteen T-69 trams were the original fleet, introduced into service in 1999, These were withdrawn from service gradually during 2014/15 as the new Urbos 3 fleet was introduced. The last, no. 16, was withdrawn from service in August 2015.^[33]

The T69s were used only on the Midland Metro, and were built by the Italian company AnsaldoBreda. Their closest "brothers" were the SL95 running in Oslo, Norway, as well as the mechanically similar Manchester Metrolink T-68A trams. At 24.36 m (79 ft 11 in) long, the T-69s were the shortest modern tramcars in Britain. The vehicles were articulated, resting on three bogies, and had low floors over about 60% of the length. The central section of the trams was low floor, with inwards facing seating at the sides, while at each end was a raised seating area, accessible by steps. Each tram had 56 seats, with space for another 100 standing. They were accessible from three 1.25 m (4 ft 1 in) wide entrances on each side, with twin plug doors.^[31]

When delivered, all trams carried a livery of a purple body, red fronts, grey skirt and yellow doors, but trams 05, 07, 09, and 10 were refurbished and repainted in Network West Midlands' silver and magenta livery, tram 11 was also repainted, this unit was repainted into the original Birmingham Corporation Tramways. From their entry into service, each tram had a roller-blind style destination board; in 2013, these were replaced with new LED Destination boards on all trams.^[34]

Most trams were named after local celebrities or people of note.^[16] After withdrawal 1-15 were placed in storage at Long Marston. In February 2016 proposals were unveiled to convert the Isle of Wight Island Line into a tram line. It was reported that the remaining T-69s could be purchased second hand and re-used for this scheme.^[35] However, this proposal never came to fruition, and in 2018 tram 11 was donated for preservation. The remaining 12 were sold for scrap. In July 2022 Transport for West Midlands scrapped "preserved" tram 11. Trams 07 and 10 remain in storage at Long Marston. In June 2022 tram 10 was repainted into an advert for British Transport Police for use during a demonstration at the annual Rail Live event.^[36]

Tram 16 was moved from Long Marston to the Very Light Rail National Innovation Centre in Dudley in November 2023, where it was refurbished and re-liveried as a battery-powered test tram.^[37][38]

Key:	Stored	Scrapped

Fleet Number	Tram Name	Livery	Notes[39]
01		Original (blue, red, grey, yellow)	Scrapped
02		Original	Scrapped
03	Ray Lewis[40]	Original	Scrapped
04	Sir Frank Whittle[41]	Original	Scrapped
05	Sister Dora	Silver and Magenta	Scrapped
06	Alan Garner	Original	Scrapped; was involved in 2006 collision
07	Billy Wright[42]	Silver and Magenta	Stored at Long Marston
08	Joseph Chamberlain	Original	Scrapped
09	Jeff Astle	Silver and Magenta	Scrapped
10	John Stanley Webb	British Transport Police advert	Stored at Long Marston[43]
11	Theresa Stewart	Birmingham Corporation	Was expected to be preserved by Birmingham City Council[44] Scrapped July 2022[45]
12		Original	Scrapped
13	Anthony Nolan	Original	Scrapped
14	Jim Eames	Original	Scrapped
15	Agenoria	Original	Scrapped
16	Gerwyn John[46]	Original	Refurbished at the Very Light Rail National Innovation Centre in Dudley, as a test tram.[38]

• 
  Interior of a T69
• 
  Sideways view of tram 06 in original livery
• 
  Tram 09 in silver and magenta livery in 2008
• 
  Trams 09 and 14 on the street running section in Wolverhampton in 2006

Maintenance vehicles

National Express Midland Metro, the former operator of the tramway until 2018, acquired a number of vehicles for maintaining the line. These included a Unimog,^[47] and road-rail lifting platform.^[48] These vehicles have been transferred to the new operator, Transport for West Midlands, and are still in use.^{[citation needed]}