Brierley Hill in the 1980s to become the Merry Hill Shopping Centre. Brierley Hill was originally in Staffordshire, but is now part of the West Midlands metropolitan county since its creation in 1974. Since 2008, Brierley Hill, including the nearby Waterfront Business Park and Merry Hill Shopping Centre, has been designated as the Strategic Town Centre of the Dudley Borough, with the aim of creating a new town centre for the borough. The name Brierley Hill derives from the Old English words 'brer', meaning the place where the Briar Rose grew; 'leah', meaning a woodland clearing; and 'hill'. Largely a product of
Merry Hill Shopping Centre Snow Hill, Kidderminster and Worcester via Stourbridge Junction. Various distance bus services from Merry Hill are operated by Arriva Midlands, Diamond Bus and National Express West Midlands. Transport for West Midlands (TfWM) plans to open a new line of the West Midlands Metro from Wednesbury to Brierley Hill, with a new stop at Merry Hill. TfWM announced the new line will begin construction in 2019, with services beginning in 2023. The line will provide faster access to the shopping centre from Birmingham and Wolverhampton city centres. The areas around Next, TK Maxx, H&M, Eat Central, the amphitheatre and outside Debenhams