£64,000 for Metro's wipers
More than £64,000 has been shelled out on window wipers alone for trams in the Black Country in the last three years, according to new figures.
Midland Metro's fleet of 16 trams has also had its doors buttons rewired at a cost of £42,000.
The figures have been highlighted in a Centro report in to the development of the Midland Metro which runs from Wolverhampton to Birmingham through the borough of Sandwell.
In 2004 the public transport body approved £4.5 million of public funding for the maintenance of the line.
Centro spokesman Babs Coombes admitted the figures were "eye-catching" but said all of the spending was necessary.
She said: "The 16 trams each have four wipers each so that works out at £1,000 a wiper. Of course that sounds a lot when you compare it to £20 for your average car but you can't just buy these off the shelf.
"These are bespoke wipers for huge panes of curved glass which have to meet strict safety requirements and allow our drivers to have maximum visibility."
So far £2.7 million of the funding granted in 2004 has been spent on the system. This year, and into 2008, some of the larger chunks of funding will be spent on major projects along the line.
