Insider Media Limited

A transport blueprint for Birmingham city centre is being unveiled this morning and will give the green light to a rapid transit vehicle (RTV) system called Birmingham Sprint.

The vehicles - which look like trams but run on wheels - will be used to link up some of the outlying areas of the city centre with the city core.

It will also try and alleviate traffic flow from areas further out. The first route will see the vehicles operating along the A34 to Five Ways in Birmingham via Eastside, the Bullring, Paradise Circus and Broad Street.

It was unclear at the time of writing whether the RTVs will have dedicated lanes and enjoy priority traffic signalling. It was also unclear how the scheme - which is due to be operational to coincide with the opening of a revamped New Street station in 2015 - will be funded.

One of the brains behind the scheme is Gary Taylor, who is executive director of Brindleyplace developer Argent and chairman of the Broad Street BID (business improvement district).

Speaking at Insider’s Birmingham Economic Forum recently Taylor said of the scheme: “It’s about 10 per cent of the cost of a tram or railway system. And once the routes are successful you can actually turn them into trams. A lot of work has gone on with the council and I’m confident we will come up with a decent, well thought through proposal.”

The transport blueprint - Vision for Movement - is being unveiled at the International Convention Centre this morning by Taylor and Birmingham City Council leader Mike Whitby and is described as a “compelling vision to transform the way people come into and move around Birmingham city centre”.

It is expected to lay the foundations for a network of rapid transit, bus, rail, cycling and walking routes. The initiative brings together the council, local transport authority Centro and the various city BIDs.

Speaking to Insider recently, Waheed Nazir, director of regeneration at Birmingham City Council, said he is also keen to ensure that the city becomes more user-friendly for people on foot.

“In most successful European cities pedestrians have a positive experience. We want to achieve that,” he said.