The first step in an £18 million new transport hub for Dudley town centre will be taken next week when plans are expected to be approved to demolish the Fisher Street bus station.

Members of the borough’s Development Control Committee will consider an application to bulldoze the site to make way for an interchange linking up buses and Metro trams.

The proposal is also asking for permission to demolish a number of surrounding shops and businesses.

The scheme is part of  the 11 kilometre extension of the Metro line from Wednesbury to  Brierley Hill  which is forecast to cost £343 million.

The  new Fisher Street  interchange will be funded by £10 million from the West Midlands Combined Authority and cash from the Black Country Local Enterprise Partnership and Dudley Council.

Cllr Keiran Casey, cabinet member for regeneration and enterprise, announcing the scheme last year, said: “The interchange is much more than a building; it will be the heart of the town’s transformation and will change how people travel to and from the borough, creating new opportunities for jobs and leisure.”

“This is great news for Dudley. The town is already on an upward trend with so many exciting investment projects planned but this latest development really is a step in the right direction.”

If the demolition plans are are passed, work is expected to begin next year with the new interchange being completed by 2022 – ready for the scheduled opening of the Metro extension.

Recommending approval, planning officers have said the project will:  “Act as a catalyst for regeneration in the town centre.”

Councillors will discuss the application at a meeting of the  Development Control Committee on March 5.

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