Coventry Very Light Rail to be expanded to six city areas - full list

NewsCoventry Very Light Rail to be expanded to six city areas - full listTesting for the VLR project is underway on Queen Victoria Road and Greyfriars

RoadcoventrytelegraphBookmarkShareCommentsNewsByJaspreet KaurReporter05:01, 4 JUN 2025Updated11:50, 4 JUN 2025BookmarkVideo LoadingVideo UnavailableClick to playTap to playThe video will

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Coventry City Council has revealed that a first-of-its-kind transport project is set to be expanded. Very Light Rail (VLR) is currently being trialled on Queen Victoria Road and Greyfriars

Road.

Coventry Very Light Rail has been described as an affordable transport system with a battery-powered vehicle which eliminates the need for overhead wiring. Tracks are laid 30cm within

existing roads and have been installed in the city centre in just eight weeks, Cllr Jim O'Boyle said.

Residents are being given the opportunity to try the new transport system in June. One who hopped on board on Friday (May 30) said it was 'the best thing Coventry could have ever wished

for.'

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Cllr O'Boyle revealed that the Department for Transport has released £12m for the project. Funds will be used to expand the track from Coventry Railway Station to the Coventry

University Technology Park on Puma Way.

CoventryLive tried the new VLR system yesterday (June 3) and heard from Cllr O'Boyle, who has been spearheading the project. He revealed they will also be looking to expand in

'growth areas' across the city, including the Coventry Gigafactory.

Speaking to CoventryLive, Cllr O'Boyle said: “Coventry passengers deserve a choice of how they travel around our city. Sheffield, Manchester, Nottingham, Birmingham, London, Glasgow,

Edinburgh, all of those have choice, so we should have that choice as well.”

Driver Graham Dibbins, from RailAdventure UK, said he has really enjoyed driving the VLR prototype vehicle along Queen Victoria Road and Greyfriars Road. He said: “It is brilliant! It is

well put together and everything works as it should.”

Cllr O'Boyle said they will be looking to expand the transport system to Coventry Railway Station and Coventry University. It is hoped this phase of the project will be completed by

December 2026.

Expanding VLR across the city will also create a significant number of jobs. Cllr O'Boyle said: “It is not just a transport system, it also creates job opportunities. We built this

here, and we can manufacture this here, not just the vehicle but the track system, which is really the alchemy in all of this.”

As Coventry City Council owns the intellectual property for VLR, it has been in talks with the West Yorkshire Combined Authority. Cllr O'Boyle said they are 'interested' in

the system, which is projected to cost around £189m.

Coventry Airport/Coventry Gigafactory University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire (UHCW) Ansty Park University of Warwick

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