A Birmingham legal team has completed work on a £100
million project to upgrade Blackpool's Victorian tramway system
that includes the construction of a landmark depot to house new
trams.
DLA Piper's engineering and construction team in Birmingham, led
by partner Robert Norris and supported by associate Ray O'Connor
and solicitor Alex Johnson, recently completed work on the project
for Blackpool Borough Council.
The team is part of DLA Piper's national Engineering and
Construction business. Previous tram projects include Merseytram
and Nottingham Tram.
The Birmingham lawyers put in place contracts for the renewal
and upgrade of the existing tram track and for the construction of
the new depot to house 16 new low floor trams.
Meanwhile, DLA Piper's Finance and Projects team, led by partner
Alex Guy and supported by associate Kim Broadbent in Leeds, advised
Blackpool Borough Council on the procurement of the new trams.
Robert Norris said: "Despite being a technically very complex
project with interfaces between all three elements of the project -
the trams, the track and the depot - the project was completed in
less than 14 months.
"The Blackpool tramway has been in existence for over 120 years
and is currently an 18km route running from Starr Gate in the south
to Fleetwood Ferry in the north.
"It was a prestigious and challenging project for us and a job
very well done. We were able to support the local authority in
Blackpool with our considerable specialist legal expertise to make
sure everything was completed well within the tight procurement
timeframe."
Councillor Maxine Callow, Blackpool Borough Council's Cabinet
Member for Tourism and Regeneration, said: "The regeneration is not
a small task and so we rely on watertight agreements with all our
contractors to ensure we stay on track.
"The tramway development is a fundamental project to the overall
Master Plan and so we are pleased that DLA Piper has made things
run so smoothly."
The upgrade, funded jointly by the Department for Transport,
Blackpool Council and Lancashire County Council, involves the
design and renewal of approximately 8.1km of track and includes
works to highway junctions and tram stops. The new depot will house
the new trams, and is anticipated to be a landmark design at an
important gateway to the town.
Both the track and depot works are expected to be completed in
2012. The construction contracts were signed last month.
The Master Plan will transform the town with a programme to
rebuild the seafront, provide new tram infrastructure, release key
town centre and seafront sites for development, win the UK's only
regional casino licence and forge partnerships with developers and
investors.
Last month the Government gave its approval in principle to the
£125 million extensions to the Metro system in Birmingham and
the Black Country, proposed by Centro, the West Midlands Passenger
Transport Authority.
Now Centro will put forward a business case to the Department of
Transport for the project and if approved work will start before
2014.