The latest stage of the £127m expansion of the Midland Metro tram service has seen Balfour Beatty Civil Engineering named preferred bidder.

The extension through Birmingham centre, and between the city and Wolverhampton, has been awarded through transport operator, Centro – which will work alongside the contractor on the finalised design and build proposals.

Should the deal be finalised, it will see Balfour Beatty begin work as early as next year to construct a link between the two major rail stations located in the city centre.

Chief executive of Centro, Geoff Inskip, said: ‘This is a prestigious project in the heart of Birmingham, and it demands a construction partner of exactly the pedigree and calibre of Balfour Beatty.

‘We worked with Balfour Beatty last year when it built the Metro bridge for us over Great Charles Street. That was a clear demonstration of [the company’s] proven track record in delivering projects on budget and on time.’

Bill Gifford, regional managing director for Balfour Beatty, said the firm had already ‘built an excellent relationship with Centro’, which he claimed would ensure the successful delivery of the scheme.

In February last year, the-then transport secretary, Philip Hammond, agreed to finance the Midland Metro extension to the tune of £75.4m (Surveyor, 4 February 2011). The extension follows a route through a new piece of infrastructure – a £9m viaduct, built by Ballymore. Other parts of the overall £127m scheme, including platform alterations and depot work, have already begun, too.

Another element central to the plans for the extension was for the network to stop outside the new entrance to a rebuilt New Street Station in the heart of the city.

The extension is scheduled for completion in 2015. It has also been announced that plans for a £30m extension into Wolverhampton, first mooted several years ago (Surveyor, 8 July 2009) may be taken back off ice, ensuring an integrated transport loop around the Metro system.

The local authority wants to persuade Whitehall of plans to create the loop and extension – originally shelved following the 2010 Spending Review.

It claims new funding streams, such as the Regional Growth Fund, and splitting up the extension into separate contracts would make the scheme more affordable, and drive economic growth.