Old tram routes in birmingham

[morris]

can any one tell me please if trams ran from nechell green down rocky lane to aston cross its on the number 8 route. I always thought my granddad died on tram in rocky lane,but someone said it could not be a tram because they never run down there only buses.my granddad john bullock died 6 jan 1943. Has anyone any ideas as to find out if it was in local papers.
Many thanks reg morris

 

[cookie273uk]

morris, there was NO tram route down Rocky Lane, I worked at Hercules Cycles Rocky Lane in 1944 (my 1st job on leaving school). There were 3 routes along Lichfield Rd Aston Cross. the No. 2, 78 and 79 ( Erdington, Short Heath and Pype Hayes) plus the 3X from Witton which came down Park Rd, all passing top of Rocky Lane on way to City centre. I lived in Queens Rd and if weather was bad would catch the 3X otherwise I would walk. Eric

 

[Astonian]

HI MORRIS
Cookie is correct there was no trams down rocky lane as i can vouch for it as i lived along the lichfield road
just a hundred or two yards from Aston cross plus the fact i was always on the aston cross because my grand parents had all there shops
around the every corner of the aston cross [ coffee shopps and fish /chips shops and along the aston north just by the cross
and also down rocky lane
and my grand father when he was young was a tram conductor whom lived in parliment street and worked at the miller street depot
and i recall the last trams and the changing to trolly bus,s in that period best wishes Astonian

 

[Astonian]

HI MORRIS
Later today i will put a picture up of old aston cross and lichfield rd showing the trams and the overhead cables
and the three ways cookie as mentioniond itwill be later in the day thou;as i have got alot of running around with the old dutchess
As she as got her last minute shopping to do because she and her lady friends from the rocklands line dancers are off to sunny bournemouth
for a ladies week doing line dancing displays and the usal tipples of what they fancy
Last year i went with them and they done a couple of gigs on the motoway resturunats and they done there line dancing all dressed up
and they had me on old pugsey out fit in front dancing and jigging the buckets in both hands collecting money whilst they was dancing
cor blimey i lost pounds in that out fit [ by sweating like a pig ] it made my day thou as it went down well;
there was dozen of kids [ toddlers ] being brought to me to stand and have there photograph taken next to me and putting there little pennies in my buckets
plus the fact i have to go down to the Q;E Hospital today to see my baby sister whom is 59 years old as i got a phone call from brum
telling me she had been rushed into the hospital because she as had a bad stroke so you see my day is precoccupied until late in the day ;
but i will put it on for you ; best wishes Astonian;

 

[cookie273uk]

Morris. here is a painting of Aston Cross circa 1953, the 3x tram had just ceased and was replaced by the 39 bus shown at bottom of Park Lane, but the 2, 78 and 79 trams were still running. Rocky Lane would be 1st right (off the painting). Astonians pic may show it. Eric

 

[cookie273uk]

Morris. somehow printed 3 pics instead of one ! sorry about that, here is another pic Aston Cross from another thread by a member. This shows a view in the opposite direction, Rocky Lane 1st righr, I believe the Golden Cross was on one corner and Jelf's Café on the other, Astonian will confirm that has I believe it was his Grandad's Caff. Eric

 

[Radiorails]

Morris. somehow printed 3 pics instead of one ! sorry about that, here is another pic Aston Cross from another thread by a member. This shows a view in the opposite direction, Rocky Lane 1st righr, I believe the Golden Cross was on one corner and Jelf's Café on the other, Astonian will confirm that has I believe it was his Grandad's Caff. EricView attachment 92027

Much of interest in this full of life picture, Cookie. Of particular interest is tram 721 which appears to be on the 79 route. The collection boom is on the same wire as the tram on route 2. Aston was was not an area I was familiar with so I am curious to what is happening. Is the car 721, 79 route, turning back on a short working or did it temporarily cross over to the other line for loading and would it then take its place in front of the 2 route car when loaded? Looking at the motor car to the left of the pic suggests that this was an area in the roadway dedicated to loading and unloading of tramcars.

 

[cookie273uk]

Radiorails, just noticed both the the position of the collection boom and the cross over tracks, had not noticed either until you mentioned it, for some reason must have terminated journey at Aston Cross and is crossing over to return to Pype Hayes (79 route terminus about 5 miles away) Eric

 

[Radiorails]

Having been out for lunch since my earlier post I decided to have another look at the pic posted by Cookie.

I noticed, beyond what I believe to be an Austin A40 car and on the opposite side of the road to it, is a Midland Red bus stop.

I also looked at the road sign which is covered over with paper or cardboard. I get the impression that it is a new sign and most probably reads KEEP LEFT. This being the case would date the pic to shortly before, or on, the last tram running date of 4th. July, 1953.

 

[Phil]

This photo of the same area looking from the other direction was taken 4 days after the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. This would have been Saturday June 6th 1953. Villa must have been playing at home so I suppose that would account for the number of trams backed up.

 

[brummie nick]

I think it is the last trams journey, I can't read the number of the No 2 tram but if its 623 that must be the answer.
Nick

 

[jukebox]

what I believe to be an Austin A40 car

Yes indeed Radiorails - an A40 Devon, manufactured from 1947 to 1952. There was also a 2-door version called the Dorset.

 

[carolina]

I have this old photo of Lichfield Road

 

[cookie273uk]

Phil (post 10), I could be wrong but on match day if I remember correctly all the trams (3X) were parked down Witton Road outside the ground, I lived close by in Queens RD so was able to walk there (being a Villa fan) and remember a long row of trams. Eric

 

[Phil]

Cookie

I know nothing about football and even less about trams, but I couldn't think of any other explanation for there being so many trams lined up in one place.

 

[caggyken]

Many years ago trams ran on the Stratford RD, does any one know where they terminated and when the last ones ran??

 

[mhemery]

Many years ago trams ran on the Stratford RD, does any one know where they terminated and when the last ones ran??

HI ken trams were before my time, but in 1985 I worked for b,ham city education dept.(stores) and we moved from Grosvenor st to Kyotts lake rd old tram depot just by the black horse stratford rd Sparkbrook I would guess this was where they terminated, don,t know when the last one run though. Michael.

 

[farmerdave]

Hi caggyken. In a book I have of "Hall Green and Yardley Wood on Old Picture Postcards", by John Marks, it states that "In 1900 steam trams ran along the Stratford Road as far as College Road, Sparkhill. This route was electrified in January 1907 and extended to Church Lane (now Fox Hollies Road) in May 1914. The final extension on reserved track to the city boundary (Hall Green terminus) opened in April 1928, but all the Stratford Road group of tram services were closed in January 1937 and replaced with buses". Hope this helps. Dave

 

[cookie273uk]

caggyken I have a booklet entitled 'British Tramways in Pictures' by R J S Wiseman published 1972 and it mentions the following Stratord Rd (Hall Green) routes:- No. 19 Albert St to St Johns Rd, No 20 Hill St to St Johns Rd, No. 21 Hill St to College Rd, No. 82 Albert St to Highfield Rd, No. 83 Hill St to Highfield Rd, No. 89 Albert St to College Rd. Eric

 

[caggyken]

Any pictures of trams on Stratford Rd???

 

[Phil]

You can find most of the Birmingham Corporation Tramways Routes here.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birmingham_Corporation_Tramways

 

[Phil]

I've found these few photos of trams on Stratford Rd, I have a few others including steam trams if you are interested.

 

[caggyken]

Thanks for pictures,i would like to see the steam ones when possible

 

[Phil]

caggyken


Here you are then. 3 steam trams on Stratford Rd, all in the Sparkbrook, Sparkhill area.

 

[smithy82/3]

morris, there was NO tram route down Rocky Lane, I worked at Hercules Cycles Rocky Lane in 1944 (my 1st job on leaving school). There were 3 routes along Lichfield Rd Aston Cross. the No. 2, 78 and 79 ( Erdington, Short Heath and Pype Hayes) plus the 3X from Witton which came down Park Rd, all passing top of Rocky Lane on way to City centre. I lived in Queens Rd and if weather was bad would catch the 3X otherwise I would walk. Eric

can any one tell me please if trams ran from nechell green down rocky lane to aston cross its on the number 8 route. I always thought my granddad died on tram in rocky lane,but someone said it could not be a tram because they never run down there only buses.my granddad john bullock died 6 jan 1943. Has anyone any ideas as to find out if it was in local papers.
Many thanks reg morris

G'day, Cookie, Have you any info of this Tram/Bus? I came across it browsing old pics, looks like Stockland green to Short Heath
We have in Adelaide one simular it's called The O'Bahn but it runs on a guided track system most of the way once out of the city.
Thanks..

 

[Radiorails]

G'day, Cookie, Have you any info of this Tram/Bus? I came across it browsing old pics, looks like Stockland green to Short Heath
We have in Adelaide one simular it's called The O'Bahn but it runs on a guided track system most of the way once out of the city.
Thanks..

This was, as far as I recall, a guided busway, located on the former tramway trackbed. It was not a success.
I never saw this experiment and I am sure others on this Forum will have more details; the dates and time scale of the experiment. I believe, but cannot recall in which other city, a similar trial was made.

 

[mikejee]

Information on them is given at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_guided_busways_and_BRT_systems_in_the_United_Kingdom. they seem all to be just very short sections of the route that were guided. There is a short video of it working at leeds at

 

[OuterCircleBus]

This was, as far as I recall, a guided busway, located on the former tramway trackbed. It was not a success.
I never saw this experiment and I am sure others on this Forum will have more details; the dates and time scale of the experiment. I believe, but cannot recall in which other city, a similar trial was made.

Tracline 65 was the experimental guided bus system that was laid in 1984 to take buses on a concrete track of about 600 metres from Stockland Green along Streetly Road to Short Heath. This was the first of these systems in the UK and was used to test how ell the system worked.
A new fleet of specially adapted buses were provided for the service. They had special guide wheels fitted ahead of the front wheels to guide the bus along the track. Although trams once used the central reservation where Tracline ran they had stopped running there over forty years previously. When the concrete Tracline track was laid it is said that many mature trees were destroyed.
When the contracts to put out to run the service were put out to tender, the company that won the right to run the weekend service refused to run modified buses, so the guided busway was dismantled just three years after it started.
There have been a number of guided busways opened in the UK, the best known probably being the one in Cambridge, which was thirty-one million pounds over budget and almost two & a half years late opening.

 

[Radiorails]

There is an interesting and dedicated thread for Tracline of 26 posts.

Guided buses Tracline 65

Shambolic project ......... dear me :redface: Replacement image, may vary from original http://citytransport.info/Tracline65.htm

birminghamhistory.co.uk

 

[Bushbaby]

HI MORRIS
Cookie is correct there was no trams down rocky lane as i can vouch for it as i lived along the lichfield road
just a hundred or two yards from Aston cross plus the fact i was always on the aston cross because my grand parents had all there shops
around the every corner of the aston cross [ coffee shopps and fish /chips shops and along the aston north just by the cross
and also down rocky lane
and my grand father when he was young was a tram conductor whom lived in parliment street and worked at the miller street depot
and i recall the last trams and the changing to trolly bus,s in that period best wishes Astonian

Hi there Astonian.. can you please help me with this question that I'm asking and this is it..... did trams go along PARK LANE.. .. that's my question.. I lived in Aston a long time and even looking back at old pics of park lane I ca not see any tram lines at all... I'm sure a tram come down park road to Lichfield rd which then went onto town.. I ask because I know you have such superior knowledge of Aston.. I await your reply.. I'm on Facebook Margaret Harris if you can not get back to me on this site.. but I await your reply..many thanks..