Kings Parade demolition takes step further with removal of external structure

The demolition of a Birmingham City Centre building to make way for a new Metro route has moved a step closer to completion with works now underway to remove the external structure.

The Kings Parade site in Dale End was home to a popular McDonalds fast food restaurant before it closed in 2021 and has since been empty. It is being removed to allow trams to travel from Bull Street to Digbeth High Street as part of the Birmingham Eastside Metro extension.

The Midland Metro Alliance (MMA), which is designing and delivering the route on behalf of Transport for West Midlands (TfWM), began the demolition activity in October 2022 and have since made considerable progress. The internal fabric of the building has been completely stripped down during the autumn allowing the team to move on to the external structure.

From left: Maria Ion, project director at MMA, Mayor of the West Midlands Andy Street and James Callingham, project sponsor for TfWM

The ongoing tramway works on Digbeth High Street at one end of the extension and Lower Bull Street at the other are due to be completed later this year leaving these streets clear of main Metro works and cordons. Despite the MMA’s best efforts, work on the final central section of the line is unlikely to commence until 2026 owing to HS2’s work on Curzon Street Station.

As a result TfWM and the MMA are investigating a proposal to open a temporary tram stop next to the Clayton Hotel to better serve both Moor Street Railway Station and Birmingham City University campus until the full extension opens.

Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands visited the site to see first-hand the progress that has been made.

Mr Street said: “The removal of this well-known building is a clear sign that the Birmingham Eastside Metro extension is continuing to progress and I’m delighted that the demolition is moving along at pace. As well as making way for the new Metro route, the removal of Kings Parade will also pave the way for the regeneration of this area of the city centre making it more attractive to visitors, investors and local residents alike.

"Any delay to the opening of the extension in full is of course frustrating and that’s why we’re straining every sinew to get this project back on the right track.

"We’re pursuing options to get part of the line open as soon as possible so we can secure a convenient tram stop – linking Metro to Moor Street Station. Despite short term challenges, we must keep our eyes on the prize and remember that the ultimate destination here is a vastly improved public transport offering for local people to enjoy for many years to come.” 

The complex demolition is due to be completed in the summer ahead of track laying commencing later in the year. Track laid in Dale End will link the existing line one whilst also being the spur which takes the route eastward to Digbeth.

Maria Ion, Project Director, said: “The team have been busy gutting the entire of the inside of the building over the last few months and it is great that these works have now been completed allowing us to move on to the main structure. Construction work in this part of the city centre is really starting to take shape and I am pleased that we are achieving another milestone just weeks after we installed the first section of rail in nearby Lower Bull Street.”

Once completed the Birmingham Eastside Metro extension will run from Bull Street, in the city centre, to Digbeth, with the original design adding four permanent tram stops to the Metro network. More than half of the 1.7km route is planned to be free of overhead wires, similar to the extension from Grand Central to Centenary Square.