Old Tram Routes as Bus Routes Today

[Ginger66]

I know the 74 Birmingham to Dudley is one route that is still active and virtually operates to the same route (except for the town centre of West Bromwich) are there any other routes the trams use to operate that are active today.

[Squiz1971]

The Bristol Road duo 61/63 I believe are another route that run like that

[Stu]

I'm pretty sure the 87 was originally a tram route too, certainly I recall seeing a photo of a trolleybus showing 87 as the route number, don't know if it went all the way to Dudley though as a tram route.

[DJ]

I'm pretty sure the 87 was originally a tram route too, certainly I recall seeing a photo of a trolleybus showing 87 as the route number, don't know if it went all the way to Dudley though as a tram route.

Mark Fitchew has a series of blogs detailing the history of the Dudley Road, part one covering the early years can be found here.

It was originally a tram line, and the 87 number for through journeys to Dudley started in 1928, when Birmingham Corporation took over the operation from BET.

[SO6597]

The Bristol Rd trams were the 70 (Rednal) and the 71 (Rubery). The old 62 followed the tram route up until its withdrawl and for a long time its terminus was part of the old tram loop before moving further down the Lickey Rd.

[Justin Tyme]

I believe the only other tram route number that is still in use, although more of a coincidence perhaps, is the 50.  In tramway days it ran City - Trafalgar Road (Moseley) via Bradford Street.  It was a short working - the full route (to Alcester Lanes End) was the 42.  Almost every short working on the Birmingham Corporation tramway and trolleybus systems had its own number.

Two other tram route numbers to last into the West Midlands Travel era were the 44 to Acocks Green via Warwick Road, and the 75 to Wednesbury via West Bromwich.

[DJ]

I believe the only other tram route number that is still in use, although more of a coincidence perhaps, is the 50.  In tramway days it ran City - Trafalgar Road (Moseley) via Bradford Street.  It was a short working - the full route (to Alcester Lanes End) was the 42.  Almost every short working on the Birmingham Corporation tramway and trolleybus systems had its own number.

Two other tram route numbers to last into the West Midlands Travel era were the 44 to Acocks Green via Warwick Road, and the 75 to Wednesbury via West Bromwich.

The 75 was only around for a fairly short while in recent years. The creation of WMPTE enabled the 79 to run from Wolverhampton to Birmingham, replacing the 75. It was brought back after the 79 was cut back to West Bromwich, but later axed again, replaced by the 74 shorts to West Bromwich.

[Jack6101]

On Hopkins street in Tividale just of the tividale road ( side of tividale chef) is a small monument about the tividale trams

[karl724223]

Hartshill 246 now pensnett 6 was a old tram  trollybus route known as the DnS

[bubble2899]

The former 558 was an old tram route

[busfan2847]

Realistically speaking nearly all tram routes that operated in the West Midlands still have bus services provided over the same or similar routes. Very few of them retain the same route numbers. Birmingham trams had a different route number for every short working over a route. When replaced with buses each route was given a number and each short working a letter, starting at A for the turning point closest to the city and increasing outwards (for the 50 the old tram terminus at Alcester Lanes End became 50K). Many of the dual carriage ways (eg Bristol Rd, Tyburn Rd) were originally provided for reserved tram tracks. Birmingham tram routes closed between 1930-1953

Walsall trams replaced 1928-33 early replacements by buses later by trolleybuses. Wolverhampton trams were replaced between 1923-8 mainly by trolleybuses. South Staffs trams in the Black Country were replaced 1926-30 by Midland Rd buses (Stourbridge to Lye, Stourbridge to Kinver, Stourbridge to Kingswinford, Stourbridge-Brierley Hill-Dudley, Kingswinford to Dudley, Dudley to Cardley Heath or Blackheath via Netherton, Dudley to Sedgeley via Upper Gornal, Dudley to Wednesbury via Princess End). Coventry trams were replaced by buses between 1932 and 1940.

Some of the tram routes no longer served in Birmingham include:
service on Leopold St to Moseley Village
service on Bolton Road to BSA plant
service on Cattell Rd to Bordesley
Lozells via Villa Rd, Loxells Rd, Victoria Rd, Lichfield Rd to Gravelly Hill (no longer a through route, parts still served)
service on Park Rd and Trinity Rd to Witton
Wheeler St, Lozells Rd, Hamstead Rd, Hockley Hill service (all roads are served - not as a through route)
Heath St to Soho St/Rabone La

[monkeyjoe]

Why did they get rid of trams?. Was it because car was popular

[busfan2847]

No the trams were replaced before the car became widely available. The last Birmingham tram was only 8 years after the end of WW2.

During the 1920s many people moved from the congested inner area to new housing developments on the outskirts of the city, and a new network of bus services, initially as tram feeders, but several were routes radiated from the city centre which ran along the same roads as the trams. People preferred the buses and many tram routes became uneconomic - not going to where the passengers wanted. Some tram routes were extended in the 1920s but they could not keep up with the expanding city.

Trams were viewed as being old fashioned, inflexible and expensive to operate. The last new trams for Birmingham arrived in 1929 and the whole fleet and remaining infrastructure was obsolete (and had war damage). Diesel buses were cheaper and allowed necessary flexibility in a period when the city was expanding and rebuilding from the extensive damage of WW2.

The first tram to bus conversion was in 1930 when the Bolton Rd service was abandoned, followed by the Hagley Rd trams 10th Aug 1930. BCT decided to replace all its trams from the mid 30s with Stratford Rd trams being replaced by buses 6th Jan 1937, followed by Handsworth & West Bromwich 2nd Apr 39, Dudley Rd 1st Oct 39 then a delay due to the war. 30th Mar 47 Lodge Rd trams were replaced, 31 Aug 47 Ladywood, 3 Oct 48 Stechford, 2 Oct 49 Alcester Rd, 1 Jan 50 Perry Barr & Witton, 1 Oct 50 Lozells & Gravelly Hill, Alum Rock & Washwood Heath, 6 Jul 52 Bristol Rd & Pershore Rd and finally the routes through Aston 4 Jul 53.

Nechells trams were replaced by trolleybuses 27 Nov 22, which were suspended 1 Oct 40 never to return
Coventry Rd trams were replaced 7 Jan 34 by trolleybuses, which were replaced bu buses 1 Jul 51

[monkeyjoe]

Ok, cheers

[busfan2847]

The former 558 was an old tram route

and a long time Wolverhampton Corporation trolleybus route (8 Jul 27 to 5 Mar 67)