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Thriving Places: Coventry

At WSP, we have an opportunity, and a responsibility, to use our insight and experience to help align the interests of our public and private clients to the benefits of towns, cities and their communities. Find out how we are using our expertise to unlock inclusive growth across multiple projects in the City of Coventry.

Location

  • Coventry, West Midlands, England, UK

Famous in the fourteenth century for producing cloth dyed blue with woad, Coventry grew into a powerhouse of the car industry – capitalising on its well-connected position in the heart of the West Midlands. This made it a target for the Luftwaffe during the Second World War and the Coventry Blitz of November 1940 destroyed not only the cathedral but factories and homes, killing many people. Post war investment focused on roadbuilding, with the city’s ring road shaping Coventry’s growth.

Today, Coventry is reinventing itself through the provision of high quality public realm and encouraging the growth of hi-tech and creative industries. Its status as the City of Culture for 2021 offers Coventry the chance to showcase the steps it has already taken to transform into an even more accessible and vibrant place – and the big plans it has for the future. Across Coventry, WSP is working to help realise the city’s vision, looking beyond individual projects to ensure we help shape a place that enables its people to thrive.

The planned Very Light Rail project is the first of its kind in the UK.
1st
Coventry is the City of Culture for 2021.
2021
Invested in the station by Coventry City Council and other local authorities.
£82m

Innovative new modes to connect people and the economy

Mobility is essential to the success of any city. We’re working with Coventry City Council, Warwick Manufacturing Group and Ingérop Conseil et Ingénierie on a new, battery-powered very light rail network for Coventry. With our role including everything from creating a vision of the future network to developing the first route concept and business case, we’ve put people first. Analysing the demographics of the city, its employment areas and where people live has helped us ensure Coventry Very Light Rail provides the connectivity people need. The first route is planned to run between Coventry Station and University Hospital, the zero emissions vehicles could be operational in the mid-2020s.

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This project will be the first of its kind in the world and has been led throughout by world-beating local automotive experience, using cutting-edge materials. The proposed VLR network is key to our vision for transport here in Coventry.

Unblocking a bottleneck

People are central to another of our projects in Coventry: the station redevelopment. Built in 1962, the Grade II listed station building was not designed for today’s passenger volumes. By funding the improvement project directly, Coventry City Council enabled a masterplan approach to regenerate the surrounding area and benefit the wider community, acting as a catalyst to boost employment and skills. As designers we have helped develop the best design option for building capacity and improving passenger experience, while also advising the client on the listed building and planning consent process.

Coventry Station (1)

The distinctive project will increase the passenger capacity of Coventry station. ©Coventry City Council

Supporting Jaguar Land Rover’s global export potential

WSP has been acting as Jaguar Land Rover’s (JLR) planning consultant since 2017. We work across their large and complex national estate, including at their global headquarters and engineering centre in Whitley near Coventry. The Whitley site employs large numbers of staff – including many of Coventry’s residents - helping to meet the global demand for Jaguar Land Rover’s vehicles. We have helped them secure planning consents to ensure the continued operation and manufacturing growth as well as upgrades and conversions at their sites. We also advise JLR on any planning related activity that could impact their operations and help safeguard their estate for future expansions, including helping to submit representations for Local Plans.

WM2041

A net zero West Midlands by 2041

WSP was the consultant for West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), the combined authority which Coventry is part of - on its first five-year net zero plan (2021-2026) as part of its strategy to achieve net zero by 2041. We helped set a trajectory for, and method to achieve a 33% carbon emissions reduction by 2026, setting out delivery plans for £4.3bn of investment and the creation of 21,000 green jobs in the same period. The plan includes a target for 35% of people to tele-commute 50% of the time by 2041, a target for cycling to make up 10% of all trips by the mid-2030s and 100% electric taxis by 2031. We also helped the WMCA accommodate plans to attract new private investment to reach its target including attracting a manufacturer for a giga factory to support local EV delivery.