Rail hub plans put Digbeth venues and music history at risk

By Marcus Bennett

The Midlands Rail Hub Alliance has unveiled early designs for a Birmingham rail project half a century in the making. Martin Price-Phillips says the proposals would demolish too many buildings, including many currently leased from Network Rail.

That assessment came in a letter responding to the 3 November report “‘It brings soul into this sterile world’: the Birmingham clubbers fighting to save their patch – and Britain’s nightlife”. Three writers weigh the scheme’s transport case against the damage they expect for Digbeth’s businesses, access and music culture.

Investment reshapes Digbeth, but the tram remains unfinished

Price-Phillips, writing from Birmingham, says Digbeth is receiving major investment. The district now attracts visitors and residents, he says, while transport links continue to improve. He lists several developments:

• New television and film studios
• Street refurbishments
• Residential flats
• A new tram route
• Better bus services

The tram has not yet delivered a simple success. Its construction has brought wholesale street redesigns, but the route remains mothballed until workers can lay connecting tracks across HS2’s Curzon Street site.

Price-Phillips calls the construction process particularly painful. He says it has also fuelled mistrust among businesses, which need certainty about the future of their premises.

What does the rail hub change for rail users?

Price-Phillips describes the project as transformational for rail travel within Birmingham and beyond. Its central promise is to remove the capacity constraints at New Street station and restore the cross-city line, described as one of the busiest rail commuter lines outside London, to a 10-minute frequency.

The consultation process has also exposed serious faults. “Network Rail mismanaged its stakeholder engagement approach,” Price-Phillips said. He added that some businesses learned about the proposals through X.

Birmingham city council has set conditions for the scheme that formalise concerns raised by businesses. The mayor recently took political oversight of one of the main organisations promoting the rail hub. Price-Phillips nevertheless believes those concerns are now being heard and calls for fresh designs at the next consultation.

Digbeth’s music history anchors the opposition

Janette Brown, writing from Castet-Arrouy, France, describes Digbeth as Birmingham’s music mecca for about 200 years. She says its range of styles has moved with the times. Brown identifies four parts of that history:

• The London museum music hall, dating from Victorian times
• The Digbeth civic hall, where the 1960s folk scene flourished and bands including the Cure and the B-52s performed
• The Irish centre, which celebrated 50 years of traditional tunes
• A terrace house on Cheapside, which gave birth to classics such as Girls on Film and Rio

Brown says these venues contributed to international successes and placed Birmingham on the musical map. She expects Digbeth’s current party scene to evolve into another culturally driven venue, drawing people together for mass celebration in a district where music remains deeply rooted.

Her conclusion is direct: “A transport hub does not fit the remit.”

Access dispute reaches the tramline

Harry Shaw, writing from Cradley Heath, West Midlands, calls Digbeth home to fascinating venues and great nights out. He says the district has never been easy to reach except by National Express coach.

During Covid, Shaw says, visitors were promised simpler access through the new Digbeth tramline. After six years of construction and temporary traffic lights, the tram still has not reached Digbeth. He fears that, by the time it opens, the service will mainly reveal the remaining interesting sites demolished to accelerate train-line updates.

Shaw argues for a joined-up approach to urban planning. Future decisions should not undo the progress achieved by earlier successes, he says.

With council conditions and mayoral oversight in place, the next consultation will show whether revised plans can protect Digbeth’s cultural sites while delivering the promised tram and a 10-minute cross-city rail service.