BBC Midlands Today

The world's leading female cyclists will be in Walsall today as the latest stage of the Tour of Britain starts and finishes in the town.

The field includes the current world champion Elisa Balsamo, from Italy, and Britain's Lizzie Deignan, the defending champion.

It's the first time the race has come to Walsall and the council is hoping it will inspire more people to get on their bikes.

BBC Radio Stoke

A man has been airlifted to hospital after paramedics were called to Pets at Home distribution centre in Stoke-on-Trent.

The ambulance service said on arrival at the site on Monday, crews had found a man in a critical condition.

He was given emergency treatment before being taken to Royal Stoke University Hospital.

BBC Radio Shropshire

Two more Shropshire community ambulance stations have closed.

The Oswestry and Craven Arms bases closed on Monday, after stations in Market Drayton and Bridgnorth shut their doors for the final time on Sunday

Ambulance bosses have insisted emergency response times will not be affected by the move.

Congestion is expected following a burst water main in Kidderminster.

Worcestershire County Council said flooding had led to "substantial damage to the carriageway" after the main burst in Comberton Hill, which connects the town's railway station with the A451.

Today, silt is being cleared from the town's Ringway, leading to sections of the road being closed between Coventry Street and Worcester Road, which is set to cause "serious" congestion problems, Worcestershire County Council Highways & Travel said.

Image source, Worcestershire County Council Highways & Travel

BBC Weather

Today will start with bright spells, but cloud and scattered showers are expected to push in from the west.

These are expected to clear later on, with a few sunny spells, but it will be a breezy day overall.

Tonight those lingering showers will clear and it should stay dry, with a few patches of cloud and winds easing.

College students capture the transformation of Birmingham's Great Hampton Street.

Alan Butler, 64, a retired policeman who became a staff investigator, is jailed for 18 months.

Specialist charities are on standby to help the victim after she is treated in hospital, police say.

Comberton Hill in Kidderminster suffers "substantial damage" due to flooding.

Almost 400 school pupils in Rugby tested positive for Covid-19 last week, the local authority says.

Severn Trent, which supplies most of the water for the West Midlands, says it has no plans to make use of a relaxation to sewage treatment rules.

Water companies may face a shortage of chemicals because of Brexit and the pandemic, so the Environment Agency (EA) says they will not be fined if they release partially treated water into rivers.

Image source, Getty Images

Severn Trent said it had not been impacted by a chemical shortage and had "no need or intention to apply to the Environment Agency" for dispensation.

The EA confirmed that to date no water companies across the country had made such an application.

James Bullock is charged over a fatal hit-and-run in Alvechurch, Worcestershire, in August.

BBC Radio WM

The removal of the £20 per week universal credit uplift is coming at the wrong time, one user says.

Gemma, from Birmingham, is among more than half a million people getting the benefit in the West Midlands.

She says the government should wait before getting rid of it.

"If they were going to do it, then they should have at least waited until the spring maybe when it is a little bit easier and people have a bit of breathing space where they haven't got the high bills, they haven't got the added cost of Christmas.

"It is hitting people who are the poorest in the country."

Image source, Getty Images

The government says the uplift has always been a temporary measure.

But Labour MP for Perry Barr, Khalid Mahmood, said it should stay.

"That money was needed, that is why it was given and it is still needed," he said.

Two men have been taken to hospital after a car being pursued by police crashed into a central reservation on the M6.

The West Midlands force said the BMW 140 had been caught speeding on the motorway shortly before 23:00 BST on 24 September and then failed to stop for officers.

The car crashed near junction 6 for Gravelly Hill, Birmingham. Police said the occupants fled but were chased down and detained.

Two 21-year-olds were taken to hospital and had since been discharged, police added. A third man, aged 19, was arrested on suspicion of driving offences and later released.

The force said a number of cars were understood to have been damaged due to debris left on the road and urged anyone affected to report it.

Detectives also appealed for any drivers who witnessed the incident to get in touch.

The club agreed to extra conditions including full body searches for anyone entering.

HGV drivers at a truck stop share their views on why the industry faces a recruitment challenge.

Lucy Letby is accused of murdering five boys and three girls at the Countess of Chester Hospital.

A man is being sought after a cyclist was seriously injured during a roobery.

Image source, Google

Two men hit the 60-year-old victim on the head with a metal object and stole his electric bike.

The attack took place near Seymour Grove, in Warwick, on Saturday evening.

Det Sgt Jen Baker of Warwickshire Police described it as a cowardly and vicious assault on a man innocently travelling to work.

A 42-year-old man, arrested near the scene, has been charged with robbery and possessing an offensive weapon.

Anyone in the Europa Way area at the time or has video footage which could help the investigation should contact police or Crimestoppers anonymously.

BBC Radio WM

Military drivers start delivering fuel to petrol stations from Monday.

It comes despite the Petrol Retailers Association saying the fuel supply crisis is "virtually at an end" in Scotland, Wales, the North and Midlands.

However, it said, petrol supplies are still not getting to London and south-east England, with more than a fifth of forecourts still dry.

But Conservative Mayor for the West Midlands, Andy Street, said it is just a short-term solution:

Image source, Getty Images

"The real issue is looking at the underlying issue here which is about the availability of HGV drivers," he said.

"So what we have got to do is get more people trained whether it is for that or for the supermarkets for Christmas or for anything."

He said there were intensive programmes to train drivers ongoing in the West Midlands.

Heavy rain could see some homes and businesses flooded this evening and overnight.

A yellow weather warning for , externalHerefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire has been issued by the Met Office from 17:00 on Monday until 04:00 on Tuesday.

Drivers could also face travel disruption from spray and flooding on roads.

Image source, Met Office