A £15 billion funding scheme could help pay for long-discussed extensions to Nottingham’s tram network, the Government’s transport secretary has said. In 2004, the first Nottingham Express Transit (NET) line opened, linking Hucknall and Phoenix Park to the Lace Market in the city centre via a nine-mile track, before an extension to Toton and Clifton was built in 2015. Three main locations have been touted for a future extension. The first could connect the tram to Gedling , while the second and third options could connect it to either the ongoing Fairham Pastures development near Clifton, or the Chetwynd Barracks development in Chilwell. A new park-and-ride in Rushcliffe has also been mentioned in a recent report. During a visit to Nottingham to discuss the Government’s integrated transport strategy, transport secretary Heidi Alexander said: “I came to Nottingham to learn how they got the tram in place here. I understand why there are very significant ambitions for expanding the tram. “The Government is investing £15.6 billion in a funding scheme, that is called Transport for City Regions, that will enable us to invest in things like tram extensions across the country.” But she said: “It will be a decision for local leaders to make about the timing and investment priorities locally.” The East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA), headed by Labour Mayor Claire Ward, announced in March 2025 that it would commission a £300,000 study into extending Nottingham’s tram network. The last time an expansion almost gained traction was when Nottingham City Council approved plans to put business cases together just before the coronavirus pandemic. However, the pandemic prompted financial concerns for the network, when it needed support from the Government due to plummeting passenger numbers. These have never returned pre-pandemic levels, and in 2024 its losses totalled £57 million in a year. Financial struggles were later offset by a restructuring of loans, which those running the network say helped secure its future. Discussions over extensions have been ongoing for years, with a line to Derbyshire having been spoken about as early as 2014. Talks over a possible extension to Long Eaton were hushed after the HS2 hub at Toton was scrapped by Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson in 2021. Mayor Claire Ward added: “The transport powers have only just come to myself and the combined authority, so that is nearly two years we have only just taken over those responsibilities. That is why I held the Mayor’s Big Conversation on transport, to listen to what people need right across our region. “We will be talking more about what has come out, but those early themes are definitely about more reliability, more integration of bus services with trams and trains, thinking about the connectivity of our communities, not just into the city, but between those towns out in the counties.” Keolis and its subsidiary Nottingham Trams Limited currently run the network as part of the Tramlink consortium, under the Nottingham Express Transit (NET) name and branding. When Tramlink’s contract to run the NET network runs out in 2034, responsibility will be handed over to EMCCA.