Some of these are continuations of long-running infrastructure projects. Others are shorter-term maintenance jobs scheduled during what transport planners consider a quieter period ahead of Easter. Either way, they will have an impact on journey times, and being prepared is the best thing you can do.
For live and official updates throughout the week, check the Transport for West Midlands website, which provides real-time information on roads, buses, trams, and trains across the region.
City Centre Roadworks: HS2 and Curzon Street Disruption Continues
The construction activity around the new HS2 Curzon Street station remains the single biggest cause of road disruption in central Birmingham. Work has been ongoing for some time now, and this week is no different.
Sections of New Canal Street, Fazeley Street, and Digbeth High Street continue to operate under temporary traffic management arrangements. Lane closures and reduced speed limits are in place, and during peak hours, the queues stretch further than most drivers expect.
If you normally drive through Digbeth to reach the city centre or to connect to the A45 or A47, consider giving yourself at least an extra twenty minutes this week. Construction vehicle movements are particularly heavy on weekday mornings between 7 am and 9 am, when deliveries to the HS2 site ramp up.
Pedestrians around the Curzon Street area should also pay close attention to temporary footpath diversions, which have changed again following the latest phase of groundworks.
A38 Aston Expressway: Overnight Closures on Wednesday and Thursday
The A38 Aston Expressway, one of the busiest routes into Birmingham from the north, will be subject to full overnight closures on both Wednesday, 1 April and Thursday, 2 April.
These closures are scheduled between 9 pm and 5 am each night to allow for resurfacing work and structural inspections on the elevated carriageway. During these hours, traffic will be diverted via the A5127 Lichfield Road and the A34 Walsall Road.
Drivers heading to or from Spaghetti Junction during these overnight windows should expect significant delays on the diversion routes. The A5127 through Aston is not built to handle the volume of traffic that normally uses the expressway, and congestion is almost guaranteed.
Broad Street and Westside Metro Works
Broad Street remains partially affected by finishing works related to the West Midlands Metro extension. While the tramline itself is now operational, utility reinstatement work and pavement improvements on the southern side of Broad Street between Five Ways and Centenary Square are still causing intermittent lane restrictions.
Bus services running along Broad Street, including the 9 and 126 routes, may experience minor delays of 5 to 10 minutes during the day.
Drivers using Broad Street to access Brindleyplace, the ICC, or the Arena Birmingham car parks should approach from the Sheepcote Street end where possible. Access from the Five Ways roundabout end is tighter than usual due to the works, and turning movements are restricted at certain points during working hours.
Rail Disruptions: West Midlands Railway and CrossCountry Services
On the rail network, this week brings a mixture of planned engineering work and knock-on timetable changes that passengers need to be aware of.
West Midlands Railway has confirmed that services on the Cross-City line between Lichfield Trent Valley and Redditch will be running to a revised timetable from Saturday, 4 April, through to Sunday, 5 April.
This is due to signalling upgrade work at Longbridge. Trains will run every 30 minutes instead of the usual frequency, and some services between Longbridge and Redditch will be replaced by buses.
CrossCountry services passing through Birmingham New Street are also expected to face delays in the middle of the week. Network Rail has scheduled overnight possessions on the line between Birmingham New Street and Wolverhampton on Tuesday and Wednesday nights.
If you are catching an early CrossCountry or Avanti West Coast service on Wednesday or Thursday morning, check your train's status before leaving home. Delays of 10 to 15 minutes on the first services of the day are possible.
Bus Diversions to Know About
National Express West Midlands has published several temporary diversions for routes passing through areas affected by roadworks. The key ones to be aware of this week are:
- The number 50 service between Birmingham and Druids Heath is diverting via Pershore Road South due to water main repair work on Bells Lane, adding approximately 8 minutes to journey times in both directions.
- The 11A and 11C Outer Circle routes are subject to minor stop relocations near the Stirchley area while pavement works are carried out on Hazelwell Street.
- Services 51 and 63 through Winson Green are running on diversion because of a carriageway repair scheme on Western Road, which started last week and is expected to continue until at least Friday, 3 April.
- The X1 express service between Birmingham and Wolverhampton may run up to 10 minutes late during afternoon peak hours due to congestion linked to the A41 Holyhead Road resurfacing between West Bromwich and Handsworth.
- The 97 route between Birmingham and Chelmsley Wood has temporary stops in place near the Collector Road junction in Marston Green, where drainage improvement work is restricting road width.