The Coventry Very Light Rail Project (CVLR) has taken a major step forward, as Coventry City Council and WMG, at the University of Warwick, launch a real-world demonstration site for its light rail track system. 

The site, based at WMG, gives stakeholders a snapshot of what is to come in Coventry, when the first phase of the city route opens. 

The track form, designed to sit within the top 30cm of existing road surfaces, is easy to install and can be removed quickly.

Designed in partnership with experts at Ingerop, the line is expected to cost £10million per km - a significant saving to current tram tracks which can cost upwards of £25million per km.

The new track has been developed for a zero-emission, battery-powered lightweight shuttle vehicle created with TDi.

The vehicle itself is lightweight, and there will be no overhead power supply along the route, significantly reducing infrastructure costs.

Following installation at the University of Warwick, Coventry City Council will install test track at its Whitley Depot waste facility to test it with heavy goods vehicles, and also at the Very Light Rail National Innovation Centre (VLRNIC) in Dudley, where vehicle testing is currently taking place.

Dr Christopher Micallef, principal engineer at WMG said: "The University of Warwick urban track demonstration site provides an ideal scenario to prove-out the installation methods of the novel track system.

"The site will enable various competing sub-systems such as the encapsulation and pavement systems to be trialled to further explore the advantages and challenges.

"The site includes features such as water drainage gullies, buried utilities and a sewage access chamber to ensure that solutions to these real-world complexities can be explored.

"After the first phase, which is all about the track installation process, the site will be further utilised to allow various scenarios to be simulated and enable active engagement with key stakeholders such as utility companies, materials and subsystems supply chain and city transport planners. Eventually it could provide a facility to train the next generation of track installation teams." 

Coventry Very Light rail is being led by Coventry City Council and has received funding from the West Midlands Combined Authority, the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership and the council.