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Fares please - and then some! The cost of moving the National Express Bus Depot in time for the Commonwealth Games has suddenly shot up eightfold to £16 million.

Angry Conservative Group members have accused Birmingham City Council of trying to bury the 'bad news' by detailing the shock increase in a report published on New Year's Eve 'without a formal Cabinet meeting and without the opportunity for a ‘call-in’ to scrutinise the decision'.

And they claim the news could even threaten the project to build the Athletes Village for the July 2022 event.

Publication of the increased cost of moving the depot follows on from last month's controversial decision to approve the demolition of the Perry Barr flyover in time for the Games - the council wants to improve public transport but many locals fear the impact of traffic jam while the work progresses.

The new report was presented as a Report to the Interim Chief Executive of Birmingham City Council and dated December 30, 2019.

Called 'Commonwealth Games - National Express Bus Depot relocation', the report says the 'original (£2 million) allocation was based on limited information and a number of assumptions and exclusions.

'The increase of £13.5million is a result of full details being provided, and costs being re-based to align with development timescales.'

Birmingham City Council today told BirminghamLive in a statement that the plan would go before a full Cabinet meeting for approval next month.

It said: “A revised full business case (FBC) is being prepared reflecting the details outlined in the bus depot report and other changes to the programme.

(Image: Google Maps)

"This will be presented to Cabinet for approval in February 2020.

"All costs will be managed within the overall cash envelope approved through the revised FBC.”

In June 2019, the government said the cost of the games would be £778 million - including £594 million from central government, £184 from the city council and its partners.

Ian Ward, Leader of Birmingham City Council, said at the time: "The level of investment coming into the city and the wider West Midlands as a result of our decision to successfully bid for the right to host the Commonwealth Games, is huge."

What does the increase equate to in passenger terms?

(Image: Google Maps)

The distance from the current bus depot the proposed new site is less than half a mile.

If National Express itself was paying the extra £13.5 million for the move, it would need nine million passengers (that's nine times the population of Birmingham) buying a £1.50 hop ticket each.

Or 5.625 million people buying a £2.40 top-priced single ticket.

Even if everyone bought an all-day ticket for £4.60, it would still need 2,935,000 passengers to generate £13.5 million.

What do they say?

(Image: Birmingham City Council)

The details of the extra costs emerged in a chief officer / Cabinet member report - pending a 'full business case' going before Cabinet in February 2020.

The report said: "The relocation of the National Express Bus Depot is a critical plot necessary to enable the assembly of the site for the non-residential part of the Games-time Village.

"It is also important to the legacy regeneration of Perry Barr as it unlocks legacy residential development by relocating the non-conforming use to a site which is not suitable for residential development, thereby making more efficient use of land.

"The site will accommodate around 135 new homes and without it, the delivery of around 100 further homes on the site of the Oscott Gardens student accommodation would be difficult to achieve."

Cllr Ewan Mackey (Sutton Roughley), deputy Leader of the Conservative Group, said: "Concerns are growing for the Athletes Village that the council are due to provide for the Commonwealth Games after it emerged that the required relocation for the National Express Depot would now cost the council nearly eight times the original budgeted cost.

"The Conservative Group has criticised the Labour run Executive for bypassing the usual decision making process to implement this decision between Christmas and New Year without a formal cabinet meeting and without the opportunity for a ‘call-in’ to scrutinise the decision."

Conservative Group leader Cllr Robert Alden (Erdington) added: "At the same time the council was discussing with National Express about the depot they were also angering them by refusing to reconsider the ridiculous decision to demolish the flyover.

"Instead of having a holistic view of the whole transport network in Perry Barr area with them they have taken each item in isolation, costing the council millions more than budgeted for and putting in place decisions that will cause traffic chaos for the next two years and more."

"We have asked for assurances that the Sprint buses can even get into the new depot that is planned as we have concerns about the access the Council is building."

The domino effect

In October, BirminghamLive detailed how one scheme impacts on another and on another. For example, the current bus depot site has been mooted for athletes' facilities during the Games.

Moving the bus depot would then have the knock-on effect of having to relocate a Job Centre.

That in turn would mean the end of 12 shop units run by local people.

An 'Equalities Appraisal' published in March 2019 said: 'It is recognised that the scheme as a whole requires the loss of commercial and residential space in the short term, and that the implementation of the scheme will cause disruption.

"Specific mitigation measures will be put in place during the delivery of the various elements of the scheme to ensure that the impact is managed and that, for example, businesses are able to continue operating effectively.

"The loss of local facilities such as small shops, restaurants and takeaways, and banking facilities as a result of the scheme is recognised and the Council is working with local businesses to look for relocation opportunities which will minimise the impact of this, and to reprovide key facilities in new developments.

"The scheme facilitates the delivery of a new school, adjacent to the Games-time Athlete’s Village.

"This will provide additional secondary school and sixth form places in a mixed, non-religious setting, to meet local demand.

"The scheme as a whole will improve accessibility and movement across the area, for all residents and visitors. There will be better access to existing and new open spaces. Public transport will improve access to areas of employment'."