Tram services in the West Midlands have been suspended indefinitely after a fault was discovered among the fleet. West Midlands Metro, which runs the network between Birmingham and Wolverhampton, said all of its 21 trams had been removed for inspection.
Operators said the decision was "precautionary" and "had not been taken lightly".
Alternative travel arrangements have been put in place for passengers on local bus and train services.
West Midlands Metro apologised for the inconvenience and said inspections were already under way to resume services as soon as possible. Passengers will be able to use their tram tickets on local bus and train routes. Metro tickets will be accepted on the following services:
The number 74 and 79 National Express buses between Wolverhampton, West Bromwich and Birmingham
West Midlands Railway and Avanti train services between Wolverhampton and Birmingham
The tram operator was informed of the fault following maintenance checks from the manufacturer, CAF. Midland Metro Ltd has not revealed the nature of the fault, or the number of trams affected, but said that staff or customer safety had never been compromised. The tram service normally operates every 6-8 minutes during peak times between Birmingham Library and Wolverhampton St Georges, travelling through Handsworth, West Bromwich and Wednesbury.