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Some Birmingham Buses

Stratford-upon-Avon Blue Motors it appears owned over 180 vehicles since the company's inception in 1927.
However to give some of the post WW2 fleet of 30 buses, which were purchased from 1948 onwards thus enabling the mixed bag of pre-war new and second hand vehicles to be withdrawn. This made the company almost unique, for a private (albeit a B&MMO subsidiary) to have no pre 1948 buses in the fleet. Interesting as their parent, Midland Red, still had quite a few pre-ww2 vehicles in their fleet.
32 - 39 GUE 238 - 245 Leyland Titan PD2/1 double deck 1948
40 - 49 GUE 246 - 255 " Tiger PS1 saloon 1948/9
50 - 53 JUE 348 - 351 " " PS2 " 1950 50 - 53 were rebodied into double deckers 1963 (32 - 35)*
54 - 55 JUE 352 - 353 " " " " " 55 was " " " decker 1961 became 16
26 - 31 JUE 354 - 359 " Titan PD2/1 double deck "
23 - 25 MAC 570 - 572 " " " " 1952 received platform doors in 1955

The three rebuilds took fleet numbers, but kept registrations, of time expired buses.
I had the good fortune of seeing and riding on many of these fine buses.
 
I can't now remember where I was going to, but going on West Bromwich buses from near Snow Hill station was a bit different. You had to pay in two instalments. You paid at the start of the journey and then at the Birmingham/West Bromwich border you paid the final instalment.

I think you could travel on dark blue/pale cream or light blue/deeper cream buses.
 
That was the 73 to Carters Green, 74 to Dudley, 75 Wednesbury, 76 to Great Bridge. 77 to West Bromwich, 78 to Dudley Port and 79 to Wolverhampton. The 72 Hawthorns and 74 and 75 were frequent the rest were not so. These were a joint BCT/West Brom operation. It changed, I gather when, the PTE took over.
There is more somewhere else on the Forum about this.
 
74 to Dudley and 75 to Wednesbury were the basic routes, all the others except 79 were short workings. BCT had the fares within Birmingham and West Brom had the fares outside the city boundary irrespective of which bus they were collected on. So sometimes West Brom had to work the 72 for which they got no revenue just to balance the mileage.

I think the 79 was a Wumpty route as it was a combination of the Birmingham to West Brom (BCT/West Brom Joint) and the West Brom to Wolverhampton (Joint WB/Wolves) routes. Just to complicate the issue, Midland Red were given a share of the fares on the Wolverhampton route as it ran through their territory.
 
I have been given a DVD entitled Another Look at Birmingham's Trams and Buses. It was issued in co-operation with the Birmingham Historical Transport Group. The cover shows a picture and the caption reads Cars 682 and 657 at Pype Hayes Terminus on 7th March 1953.

Does anyone want it? Send a PM and I will mail it to you.
 
Following on from the previous posts it was interesting to go to Dudley via the different routes from the city centre.
In numerical order it was possible to travel by the 74, from Snow Hill Station entrance going via Hockley a joint BCT and WB service. Then there was the B87, usually a Midland Red bus, which went from Edmund Street, adjacent to the Council House, via Dudley Road. These were jointly operated routes dating from the pre-ww2 (South Staffordshire) tram routes
Another way was by Midland Red 125/126 and 140. These were from Paradise Street, from memory using Hagley Road as the way out of the city. A 195/196 route went to Wolverhampton - some to Stafford - and I believe went via Dudley although I never went on these two routes.
This post is based on those services running in the 1950's and before the PTE changes.
 
Historically 125 Birmingham to Wolverhampton via Dudley used the Wolverhampton New Road/Birmingham New Road as far as the Burnt Tree (B87 & 74 also met at this point) and went into Dudley and came back out along Tipton Road rejoining the Birmingham New Road to Wolverhampton.

126 followed the same route into Dudley but left via the Wrens Nest area rejoining the Birmingham New Road closer to Coseley by a former large pub whose name I have forgotten.

196 Same route as as 126 but continuing on to Stafford. This was my first long distance outing by Midland Red as a child and I remember having to pay again at Wolverhampton. In time the 196 was replaced by an additional 126

These three service ran hourly combining to provide a service every 20 minutes. I think there were other services which filled the gap in the 126 service between Dudley and Wolverhampton

The 140 continued along Hagley Road West to Quinton Stag and then went to Dudley via Blackheath
 
Every Bus Co must have gone to the sales when these came up.Stagecoach have this type running down here in Kent.Was it a Job Lot:laughing::laughing:
 
Some of the new National Express West Midlands Platinum buses on the 50 have gone red!



Well just at the front and back and with a strip.



The terminus of the 50 outside of Selfridges.

 
I saw a bus in the old West Bromwich Corporation livery on Wednesday in Harborne so I assume it was on the 48 route to West Brom.
 
Former Travel West Midlands Metrobus seen with Roberts the other day on School Road in Hall Green. There is roadworks at the School Road / Stratford Road junction, and according to Google Maps will last until the 11th August 2019! And 4 way temporary traffic lights.

 
This week been faster to get a bus through the Hall Green roadworks in the morning compared to the early evening. Not sure what you are going on about Edifi?
 
There appears to be a Roberts Travel company, with school buses, based in Hugglescote, Leicestershire. Nearer to Brum than Kent.
 
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