Former/deceased garages

[SEVERNLINK]

There was Stourbridge garage which was an odd one because services departed from inside it, off the top of my head 245/6/8 256/7 250 292/3. Chocolate and drinks machines were provided for passengers use. Certainly wouldn't be allowed these days as vehicles would be moved around while people were inside, the Health & Safety people would have had a field day with it these days.

There's some pictures of buses departing Stourbridge garage on services on this website.http://transport-illustrated.blogspot.co.uk/2012/01/west-midlands-in-seventies.html What's intrigued me for a while are the two pictures of Midland Red vehicles leaving the garage perhaps they picked up there as well but there's no sign of any passengers on board?

[Stuharris 6360]

There's some pictures of buses departing Stourbridge garage on services on this website.http://transport-illustrated.blogspot.co.uk/2012/01/west-midlands-in-seventies.html What's intrigued me for a while are the two pictures of Midland Red vehicles leaving the garage perhaps they picked up there as well but there's no sign of any passengers on board?

@SEVERNLINK Only a few services loaded in the bus garage, there were two further bus stations, one either side of the town station, one for services to Birmingham, Pedmore/Wynall and Cradley Heath, the other side for local services to High Park, Wollaston, Norton & Brierley Hill via Penfields, so quite possibly several of the buses on that site were just coming out of the garage to take up service.

Certainly those pictures bring back so many memories, if you lived in places like Pedmore/Wollaston/Norton, there was only one destination for your bus, Stourbridge. On the other hand though, in the early 70s, it was surprising that Cradley Heath on Saturdays had a very frequent service with the 240/1/2, now there is no direct service. Then the 1976 bus review took place and it opened up new journey oppurtunities.

[paulb1973]

Did WMPTE allocate a two-letter code to the former Coventry garages? HN and SY are ringing bells - unless they were 'codes on paper'. At present Coventry seems to have become CV (previously WT) and is Pensnett officially PE or PN?

[Tony]

Did WMPTE allocate a two-letter code to the former Coventry garages? HN and SY are ringing bells - unless they were 'codes on paper'. At present Coventry seems to have become CV (previously WT) and is Pensnett officially PE or PN?

Yes when I started in 1978 the Coventry garages were using HN & SY, although the vehicles still had the S & H plates on them.

Cleveland Road was CV then as well

Coventry changed from WT to CV at the same time as Liverpool Street changed to BC and Park Lane became WN, senior managers at the time took a dislike to garages being named after roads!

Pensnett is PE on some company systems and PN on others, so both are 'official'

[Mike K]

Yes when I started in 1978 the Coventry garages were using HN & SY, although the vehicles still had the S & H plates on them.

Cleveland Road was CV then as well

Coventry changed from WT to CV at the same time as Liverpool Street changed to BC and Park Lane became WN, senior managers at the time took a dislike to garages being named after roads!

Pensnett is PE on some company systems and PN on others, so both are 'official'

I always thought Cleveland Road was CR, and that Coventry Road was CV?

(All very confusing!)

[Stuharris 6360]

Yes when I started in 1978 the Coventry garages were using HN & SY, although the vehicles still had the S & H plates on them.

Cleveland Road was CV then as well

Coventry changed from WT to CV at the same time as Liverpool Street changed to BC and Park Lane became WN, senior managers at the time took a dislike to garages being named after roads!

Pensnett is PE on some company systems and PN on others, so both are 'official'

@Tony , isn't Pensnett also known by PT?

[paulb1973]

Yes when I started in 1978 the Coventry garages were using HN & SY, although the vehicles still had the S & H plates on them.

Cleveland Road was CV then as well

Coventry changed from WT to CV at the same time as Liverpool Street changed to BC and Park Lane became WN, senior managers at the time took a dislike to garages being named after roads!

Pensnett is PE on some company systems and PN on others, so both are 'official'

There was a rash of green 'WT' circular stickers on the front windscreens of all Coventry buses in about 1987. Some more appeared in the mid 1990's [so 30xx Metrobuses carried them - perhaps another box of stickers was found in the stores!?]. I never really saw the need for those, Coventry buses generally just mingled with other Coventry buses, the AG/WT jointly-operated 192/3/4 and BC-operated 900 aside. In the wider WMT fleet and on the other side of those stickers was the radio call-sign information I presume. In Coventry the letter 'C' and the full fleet number was displayed; Fleetline 6988 carried C 6988 etc - which I took as meaning 'Coventry' or 'Control' or even phonetically 'Charlie' !

So assume WT was used for a while - in the early WMT era at least.

[Tony]

@Tony , isn't Pensnett also known by PT?

No

[Gareth]

I always thought Cleveland Road was CR, and that Coventry Road was CV?

(All very confusing!)

Yes, I've always known Cleveland Road as CR and Coventry Road as CV. Maybe it was different officially compared to fleetlist books of the time?

Likewise LS changed to BC in 1986, whereas bus garage codes on buses still showed WT and PL into the 1990s.

[Stuharris 6360]

No

Oh right @Tony , was just in the faretables that were on the NE website last year, the garage code for Pensnett is Shown as PT on all it's services.

[Tony]

Oh right @Tony , was just in the faretables that were on the NE website last year, the garage code for Pensnett is Shown as PT on all it's services.

presumably done by someone from an ex Midland Red garage where it was standard to use first and last letter on single word names

[Isle of Stroma]

Yes, I've always known Cleveland Road as CR and Coventry Road as CV. Maybe it was different officially compared to fleetlist books of the time?

Likewise LS changed to BC in 1986, whereas bus garage codes on buses still showed WT and PL into the 1990s.

I've got Cleveland Rd as CL until 09/75, when it was combined with BS & recoded CR.

[Ossie]

Mention of the services departing from inside Stourbridge garage (which I also remember from my yoof  :D)  reminds me that there was another BMMO garage where that happened as well - Digbeth!  There were a number of inspection pits at the Bradford Street side of the depot, hidden behind tarpaulins, IIRC ....

[busfan2847]

Three more to add to that list are the three acquired from Stevensons on takeover of their West Midlands Services.

There is also the YourBus one at Burton that could possibly be included.

Bilston (Mount Pleasant) was ironically used by National Express subsidiary National Travel (Midlands) Limited to house the 'Everalls' fleet before the NX/TWM merger

Which was the third one Hill Top (Tunnel Rd) or Smethwick (London St)? I thought the first one went to BCC with Sealandair and the second one was closed by Stevensons in May 94.  I assume Willenhall closed later in 1994, was the third depot used at all? Stevensons also had a depot in Darlaston. I assumed this closed when they took over the Red Rider services (and Willenhall depot) on 28th Sep 1992.

I guess if I am going to include Alcester in the list I should include Burton. Any idea where it was?

Alan

[Isle of Stroma]

Which was the third one Hill Top (Tunnel Rd) or Smethwick (London St)? I thought the first one went to BCC with Sealandair and the second one was closed by Stevensons in May 94.  I assume Willenhall closed later in 1994, was the third depot used at all? Stevensons also had a depot in Darlaston. I assumed this closed when they took over the Red Rider services (and Willenhall depot) on 28th Sep 1992.

I guess if I am going to include Alcester in the list I should include Burton. Any idea where it was?

Alan

HT   Tunnel Road, HILL TOP 08/94-09/94
SV   Combined allocation of HT, WL & WO 08/94-##/##
WL   Morgan Close, WILLENHALL 08/94-09/94
WO   Oak Road, WEST BROMWICH 08/94-(present) Outstation of WB from 09/94

BN   Imex Business Pk, Shobnall Road, BURTON.O.T. 05/94-##/##