WEST MIDLANDS TRANSPORT SYSTEM

[Ashley]

I'm not a tram fan personally, but I would happily go back up to Manchester but I think I'd have to stay up there at least a week to see the whole show mainly because the entire network is probably best described as complex

[Valandil]

I live close to both areas (in Coventry term time, and in a town near Manchester during holidays), so I can agree that Manchester does have a very good public transport system.
In particular, there are very many Enviro 400's in the Stagecoach Manchester fleet (386 including hybrids, according to Wikipedia), the majority of which are amazing.

However, the main advantage I would say Birmingham has is the speed of bus links.
In Manchester, it takes ages to get anywhere particularly in the peaks, since there is a heck of a lot of congestion, and buses often take quite convoluted routes even when connecting key locations.
This does however mean that most estates have a service to the key areas in their part of the city.

Another thing is that travelling within Manchester is okay, but as soon as you step outside, the bus links become very sketchy due to crossing boundaries.
My town (Warrington, about 20mi away) has an hourly link with Manchester, operated by First, which takes 1hr40 in total.

[Discodave]

I live close to both areas (in Coventry term time, and in a town near Manchester during holidays), so I can agree that Manchester does have a very good public transport system.
In particular, there are very many Enviro 400's in the Stagecoach Manchester fleet (386 including hybrids, according to Wikipedia), the majority of which are amazing.

However, the main advantage I would say Birmingham has is the speed of bus links.
In Manchester, it takes ages to get anywhere particularly in the peaks, since there is a heck of a lot of congestion, and buses often take quite convoluted routes even when connecting key locations.
This does however mean that most estates have a service to the key areas in their part of the city.

I live close to both areas (in Coventry term time, and in a town near Manchester during holidays), so I can agree that Manchester does have a very good public transport system.
In particular, there are very many Enviro 400's in the Stagecoach Manchester fleet (386 including hybrids, according to Wikipedia), the majority of which are amazing.

However, the main advantage I would say Birmingham has is the speed of bus links.
In Manchester, it takes ages to get anywhere particularly in the peaks, since there is a heck of a lot of congestion, and buses often take quite convoluted routes even when connecting key locations.
This does however mean that most estates have a service to the key areas in their part of the city.

Another thing is that travelling within Manchester is okay, but as soon as you step outside, the bus links become very sketchy due to crossing boundaries.
My town (Warrington, about 20mi away) has an hourly link with Manchester, operated by First, which takes 1hr40 in total.

Crikey Warrington is like Brum-Wolverhampton in comparasion and only an hourly service 5 an hour by NXWM well it was last time

[Tony]

The West Midlands Transport system is so bad today I have been out chasing odds & sods I wanted photographs of. In one day by public transport I managed to be at:-
Druids Heath to get Johnsons latest solo on the 69 http://wmbusphotos.com/Johnsons/MX08MYO.html
Stourbridge to get a Whittles dart I wanted http://wmbusphotos.com/Whittle/37.html
and wait for 1908 on the X96 http://wmbusphotos.com/NXWM/1750-1953/1908B.html
Northfield to get Diamond 20533 I hadn't got in red http://wmbusphotos.com/diamondpages/20533.html
Hamstead to get freshly painted 4475 http://wmbusphotos.com/NXWM/4475-4699/4475.html
pop in to Park lane to see if the new 2013 had arrived (it hadn't) but see 'rare workins' topic for photo of 4310 in Park Lane getting towed back!
Spend some time in Wolverhampton Town Centre for a couple of odds & sods http://wmbusphotos.com/Arriva/2266.html
also visited Bournville http://wmbusphotos.com/Trains/class323/323204.html
Smethwick http://wmbusphotos.com/Trains/class350/350256.html
I was in Birmingham City Centre to get a photo of 3225 having a Day out http://wmbusphotos.com/NXWM/3225-3614/3225.html
Oh and I nearly forgot, I dropped into Midlands depot to deliver a photograph album the company had ordered from me
http://wmbusphotos.com/Midland/3649.html

Yes the West Midlands Transport network is so bad I couldn't possibly do all that in one day, and still get home at 6pm to update this website!

[MW]

Lmao all of you just got put in your place.

[D10]

Great post Tony. Reminds me of when I used to live outside the area and I would come up and spend a day travelling around on the Daytripper ticket. I could easily get all around the county in one day, and unless say you you wanted to get from Solihull to Coventry, you didn't even need to bother to look at timetables.

The same is still true today.

[PM]

I love doing these kind of trips around the area. In one day, did Wolverhampton, Walsall, Coventry, Birmingham City Centre, Brownhills west and did I mention Coventry-tho Tony's list beats me. I take it you did it all by bus-what time did you set off in the morning?? Yesterday, tried Claribels to Chelmsley wood and back and then diamond on the 56 there and back

[Tony]

I love doing these kind of trips around the area. In one day, did Wolverhampton, Walsall, Coventry, Birmingham City Centre, Brownhills west and did I mention Coventry-tho Tony's list beats me. I take it you did it all by bus-what time did you set off in the morning?? Yesterday, tried Claribels to Chelmsley wood and back and then diamond on the 56 there and back

No several journies were by train, for instance Stourbridge to Wolverhampton, you would think catching the 256 would be the quickest, but the last bus I wanted to photograph was Hanson's 52 plate dart. It arrived at 12:40, next 256 is 13:00, so I caught the 12:44 train to Junction, 12:49 to Smethwick Galton Bridge; 13:08 to Wolverhampton and arrive 13:18, 42 minutes before the bus!

[PM]

Yeah, I should use the train more often. Tho tbh i only really know the cross city line and the other line that goes to stratford, stourbridge etc I dont know very well