Bit off my patch, but have had a number of enquiries about delays with the footbridge over the Chase Line at the former level crossing in Bloxwich. The latest update on this from Network Rail is as follows:

“On 29 July, during preparatory work for one of the piles for the Bloxwich footbridge, our contractors discovered a foul sewer which was not shown on the buried services plan which Severn Trent had supplied to us. From our investigations so far we believe that this sewer may be redundant but we naturally need confirmation from STW before we can proceed. We contacted them promptly and will follow it up regularly, in the hope that this setback can be managed without delaying the opening date of the bridge. Our contractors are bringing other work on the site forward to keep the project moving forward while this issue is addressed.” In spite of this they are still aiming to open for public use in November.

A word about the well publicised punctuality issues. There are now no temporary speed restrictions along the route so things should now begin to improve.