Trams, buses and town centre plans dominate Dudley Council’s 2026 agenda - here's the council's plan for the new year

Here is a round-up of some of the items that will be top of the agenda in the new year.

In early 2025 the council was at risk of effective bankruptcy and has undergone a restructuring process to settle the financial ship.

Dudley Council’s leader, Cllr Patrick Harley, said: “In local government at the current time it’s like a roller coaster but from where we were in late 2024 to now, financially that’s the big success story of the year.

“Where we go in the future is to continue remodelling, adult social care can bankrupt most councils but I don’t feel that any more in Dudley.”

The leader is still concerned about the whopping cost of children’s services but says his new directors are ‘strategic minded’ and are thinking five years ahead to control costs.

One thing which looks unlikely to change in coming years is council tax which is set to continue to be set at a 4.9 percent increase.

Cllr Harley said: “In the current financial plan until 2029/30 it is 4.9 percent for five years.”

The council’s introduction of parking charges on its car parks proved unpopular with town centre traders and the new year could see changes.

Cllr Harley said: “We would like to put proposals into the budget so people could park for two-and-a-half hours for a pound.”

Some council departments have been operating with unfilled vacancies which council bosses say means they don’t need to be filled but it looks likely there will be investment in new jobs for enforcement, planning and officers to tackle fly-tipping and antisocial behaviour.

Cllr Harley believes sometimes officers can be too quick to blame low staffing levels, he said: “Junior officers, when they have face-to face with the public, because they can’t give them what they want as soon as possible, they say ‘we haven’t got the money’ or ‘we haven’t got the staff’ – it’s not always correct.”

The new year is expected to see regeneration projects moving forward, the Midland Metro link in Dudley will be up and running and work on the next phase, taking the tram line to Merry Hill is under way.

Dudley’s new bus interchange is also expected to be completed in 2026.

Cllr Simon Phipps, Dudley cabinet member for economy and infrastructure, said: “The interchange is a key aspect of our regeneration programme for Dudley, connecting light rail and bus services together in the town centre.

“We are incredibly excited to see the progress that is being made on the construction and we look forward to seeing it in use next year.”

Another project set to get under way in 2026 is a £3m scheme to introduce new cycleways and provide easier access for pedestrians in Stourbridge town centre while a planning application for an ice rink in Dudley is expected in the new year.

The council has also secured funding from the West Midlands Growth Company for a feasibility study into a velodrome and multi-sports arena.

Council leaders say they have been in talks with governing bodies for cycling cricket and tennis about possible investment in new facilities.

Cllr Harley said: “We want feasibility to be done, if that comes back positive the next step is locating a site and then to the all important one: securing funding because you have got three sporting bodies keen to have some sort of facility.”