This is the vision for a £200 million Birmingham underground railway, according to the Conservative Party.
 City Tories, who commissioned the map, will halt a planned extension of the Midland Metro tram system through the centre of Birmingham in order to conduct a £100,000 feasibility study into the underground, if they win control of the city council next month. The pledge is the central plank of the party's manifesto for the June 10 local authority elections. Mike Whitby, leader of the council Conservative group, said underground services would be much faster than the metro and could be put in place without closing city centre streets for construction. Underground trains would not have to share narrow roads with cars, buses and pedestrians - a major concern over the metro extension from Snow Hill to Five Ways. Coun Whitby (Harborne), who called for urgent talks with Centro, the West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive, said: "We could not allow the metro to go trundling over the city because it would threaten the future of the underground." The initial routes planned are more extensive than the metro extension. The underground, crucially, would take in Eastside, Bullring and Dig-beth coach station. Coun Whitby said the cost, at an estimated £200 million compared with £55 million for the metro, was significant. But faster-running tube services, travelling from Snow Hill to Five Ways in seven minutes compared with 20 minutes for the metro, would equate to £15 million a year in time saved for passengers. The capital cost of buying rolling stock would be cut because, with faster journey times, the operator would not need so many vehicles. Coun Whitby added: "For a city that yearns international recognition we should have a first class underground railway system. "We believe other parties will support our idea because it is plainly common sense. Why cut up the roads when you can tunnel underneath? This will regenerate the city by enabling people to move around. East-side and Millennium Point will be brought into the network." He accepted, however, the project could only go ahead with Government backing. He will argue the case for private investors financing the underground to be given 100 per cent capital allowances, enabling tax relief to be claimed. Rod Dixon, an independent consultant who worked on Birmingham's failed bid for an underground system in the late 1980s, has been advising the Conservatives. He said: "The ground beneath the city centre is so good that you can tunnel anywhere in the central area with no problem. You would put it as near to the surface as possible, typically between ten and 20 metres deep. "It would take between a year and 18 months to construct but because disruption is so little compared to surface construction there is no need to throw a lot of money at it to speed up the work." A Centro spokesman warned that by delaying extension of the metro to carry out an underground feasibility study, the Tories would risk losing Government financial backing. Centro believes the Tories' £200 million price tag to be a "severe underestimate". Rob Donald, Centro director-general, said: "We welcome the fact that the manifesto of any political party places public transport high on the agenda. But putting a hold on the metro extension through Birmingham could delay implementation for up to ten years." | 
