Across the Midlands for a Play
Act One
25 February 2024
ABOVE: Diamond Bus East Midlands 40612 (BF15 KFE), a Volvo B5TL Wright Eclipse Gemini 3, in Clays Lane on the outskirts of Burton upon Trent, working route 12 to Lichfield. All photos in this article were taken on Tuesday 30 January 2024.
The tail is wagging the dog again! I'm chasing a play that I want to see, and I have just missed it in Eastbourne. It's heading to the Midlands, so, as I have time off work, I have decided to do the same!
So I have come to Birmingham. That's not where the play is showing, but I'm going to enjoy myself! I have a three-day bus odyssey planned around this show - which, as I start out on this trip, isn't until tomorrow night.
I visit Birmingham regularly, on business and for pleasure. I always try to travel via Chiltern Railways from London Marylebone, as I find it much more civilised. An added bonus is that I get to arrive into Birmingham via Moor Street station. This was built in 1909 by the original Great Western Railway, as an overspill to the congested Snow Hill station. The station has been redeveloped a couple of times, but many original features have been retained and the result is an architecturally-stunning station.
ABOVE: Birmingham Moor Street station concourse
I'm heading initially for Walsall. My plan is to take the X51 bus from the city centre. This is a straight-forward limited-stop run along a part of the A34 trunk road, broadly north-west from the city for just over seven-and-a-half miles. (Some buses on the X51 continue for a similar distance beyond Walsall to Cannock.)
I actually end up on the 51 service, which parallels the X51 as far as Walsall. But, as you've probably worked out, the 51 is the all-stops service. Both services are provided by National Express West Midlands (NXWM).
My departure is the 1011 service, operated by a Wright Streetdeck. There's little semblance of a queue at The Square Peg stop in the city centre - it's more of a scramble - and the driver completely ignores me when I greet him as I tap-on. Such is inner-city bus riding.
I manage to get a front seat upstairs, but am met by one of my mortal enemies - the completely steamed-up window. Even though it's a dry day, and not especially cold, seeing out of the front is almost impossible on this trip. I thought modern buses had air-con to deal with this?
As the journey progresses, it quietens down a bit and the window clears a little. An X51 passes as we serve a stop that it doesn't, but we catch it up again at the next traffic lights.
ABOVE: An ADL Enviro400 MMC on the limited stop X51 and a Wright Streetdeck on the all-stops 51 service wait to cross the Scott Arms junction in Great Barr
Just beyond Great Barr (described on Wikipedia as a "large and loosely defined area to the north-west of Birmingham"), we come to a large and complicated junction where the A34 meets the M6 motorway. It is here that the advantage (for those in a hurry) of the X51 becomes apparent. While we negotiate the junction, the X51 soars away over the flyover that has been constructed to carry the A34 right over the motorway.
ABOVE LEFT: As my 51 bus heads down the road to the left, towards the junction for the M6 motorway, NXWM 6108 (SN15 LFS, Emma Jane), an ADL Enviro400 MMC, climbs onto the flyover to speed towards Walsall, whilst the same bus can be seen, ABOVE RIGHT, a few seconds later, crossing this very busy motorway, as my 51 works its way round, above the motorway, to re-join the road to Walsall
We reach Walsall at 1051, two minutes early, having completed the journey in 40 minutes (the X51 is scheduled for 33 minutes at this time of day).
ABOVE: National Express West Midlands 3304 (SL16 YPO), a Wright Streetdeck, is seen in Walsall, at the end of its run on route 51 from Birmingham City Centre
I make a brief detour to the nearby town of Aldridge on route 6, to get some extra photos for my route 6 article; I researched this route over a year ago, but subsequently realised that I needed a couple more pictures, hence my return today.
I'm heading next for Lichfield, which I plan to return to Walsall for, but I'm not quite ready to leave Aldridge when I spot a direct service that I could potentially have used:
ABOVE: This is D&G Bus 572 (CN17 BHE), an ADL Enviro200 MMC, in Anchor Road, Aldridge, on route 36 from Walsall to Lichfield. The bus is probably being operated by Chaserider, to which route 36 is registered. Both Chaserider and D&G Bus are part of the Centrebus operation. Regardless of which operator is running it, it looks very smart.
But I head back to Walsall anyway, on NXWM route 7 (Castlefort to Walsall), where I am acknowledged by the driver (the first time that has happened today)!
It's back to normal as the driver of the NXWM route 8 bus to Lichfield ignores my greeting as I tap-on. I have now consecutively travelled on routes 6, 7 and 8!
This is a lunchtime working (1200 departure) and is quite busy as it heads out of Walsall. It's a single-decker, a Scania K230UB OmniLink, on account of a low bridge in Clayhanger (passing under a former railway alignment that is now a "walking and cycling route for the community").
We pass through Pelsall, three miles north-east of Walsall, where we pass the extensive greenery of Pelsall Common.
ABOVE: Pelsall Common
There's a pretty spot on the Lindon Road in Walsall Wood, where we are next to the Wyrley and Essington Canal (see this view on Google Streetmaps).
We cross the canal and enter Brownhills High Street. There's a slightly unfortunate occurrence at the Anchor Bridge stop here. A woman is travelling with a severely-disabled child. The driver leaves the cab, opens out the ramp and allows them to board. The woman wheels her charge into the Wheelchair User space and secures the chair. Meantime, the driver has folded up the ramp and got back into the cab. The woman goes to pay...
And they're on the wrong bus! The entire manoeuvre now has to be reversed before we can proceed!
We cross a motorway (which I later discover is the M6 Toll - I drove that on the day it opened but declined a receipt for the toll; first day, what a souvenir - what was I thinking)! We've crossed into Staffordshire and things have immediately become more rural.
Also noticeable is how the information on bus stop flags has become much less comprehensive:
ABOVE: Staffordshire's bus stop flags are far less detailed than those in the West Midlands conurbation - this example shows how one flag covers both sides of the road. Compare the information on this one, somewhere in Chasetown, with the one at Pelsall Common above
Some of the bus stops round here have a "Route 66" sticker on them. It's in the style of the famous "Route 66" in the United States, but could be a good advertising gimmick for a local bus service, perhaps? However, I haven't been able to find a route 66 here so it might just be a legacy of an old service, or someone having a joke.
We arrive in Lichfield, on time, at 1304. This has been a lovely ride - partly built-up, partly rural - and well-driven.
ABOVE: NXWM 1835 (BV57 XHC), a Scania K230UB OmniLink, has just dropped me off in Lichfield bus station, and now loads up for the return journey to Walsall.
I have a 21-minute stop-over, so I wander into the city to get a sandwich. When I get back, five minutes before my planned departure, my next bus is on the stand. This is Diamond Bus East Midlands route 12 to Burton upon Trent. Diamond initially declined to join the £2 fare scheme but has since relented.
ABOVE: Diamond Bus East Midlands 40613 (BF15 KFD), a Volvo B5TL Wright Eclipse Gemini 3, loads up at Lichfield bus station for the journey to Burton
Like the 51 earlier, this is an all-stops service that is paralleled by an express route, in this case the X12. The journey time savings are more pronounced in this case - 42 minutes on the X12 compared to 63 minutes for the 12. The reason for the difference is that the X12 runs straight down the A38 dual-carriageway, with a non-stop eight-mile section.
But the hourly 12 is a delightful drive, and anyone using the half-hourly X12 is missing out on some lovely hidden pockets of Staffordshire. The 12 is well worth the wait and the extra journey time. The 1325 departure starts busy but quietens down rapidly. For most of the journey I am the only passenger on the top deck.
We quickly deviate from the A38 and start a tour of a succession of villages. Early on the list is Fradley.
ABOVE: Church Lane, Fradley; the bus will turn left into Long Lane
Within a minute of passing through Fradley Village, we have ventured onto some very tight - and bumpy - roads. I would hesitate to drive a car down here, but the double-decker bus fits well enough - as long as we don't meet anyone coming the other way... (Spoiler alert: we don't!)
ABOVE: Literally one minute further along Long Lane, on the edge of Fradley Village. How does a double-decker bus fit down here?!
We take a double-run through Alrewas. We actually touch the side of the A38 briefly, before veering away again in a completely different direction. Burton is north-east of here, but we are heading north-west, through Orgreave. This tiny hamlet has 51 listed buildings, including the Grade I All Saint's Church.
Then to King's Bromley - recorded both with and without an apostrophe - after which the River Trent comes into view:
ABOVE: The River Trent, near the village of King's Bromley
We reach the village of Yoxall, where we pause briefly for timetable reasons before taking a sudden, and for me unexpected, right turn.
ABOVE: The Crown Inn at Yoxall
That right turn does at least mean that we are pointing back towards the A38, and our ultimate destination, but this route still has a trick or two to play...
We do a full tour of Barton-under-Needwood. I'm not quite sure what happens here as the maps suggest the bus should run around three sides of the entire village. However, a road closure, where we are due to turn off Main Street has skewed things, and pushes us further along Main Street. My impression is that we return to Main Street at the same place that we have left it, having undertaken a large detour. How much of that is on the route and how much is due to the diversion is something that I will have to answer next time I do this route.
After all these detours through some delightful Staffordshire villages, we come back to the A38 and reach the village of Branston, on the outskirts of Burton. Before I make any jokes about locals being in a pickle, I would point out that this is actually the place from where Branston Pickle originated, although it was only produced here from 1922 until 1925, after which production moved to London for economic reasons (nowadays it is made in Bury St Edmunds, in Suffolk). The building still stands - it was conceived as a Gun Factory for the First World War. It's now a Regional Distribution Centre for B&Q!
The bus gets into New Street, Burton on the dot, at 1428. A wonderful drive to enjoy from the top of a double-decker bus (although one is not guaranteed - some buses on this route are single-deckers).
Various buses are parked up here - Diamond has a local depot nearby.
ABOVE: Various buses are parked in New Street, Burton. On the left is 40726 (MX20 HVK), a Wright StreetDeck Micro Hybrid. On its way on local route 6 to Eton Park is ADL Enviro400 40522 (SN11 BNE). The two buses not in Diamond colours are still part of that operator - being in the old "Midland Classic" livery - Rotala's Diamond Bus took over Midland Classic in 2022.
Burton upon Trent has a long history of brewing, at one time exporting beer throughout the world and accounting for a quarter of UK beer production. Use of the hyphenated "Burton-upon-Trent" (or "Burton-on-Trent") is used by the Post Office, and for the railway station, but the town charter does not include the hyphens.
There has been a Market Hall in Burton since the 15th century; the existing hall opened in 1883.
ABOVE: Burton Market Hall
What I intend to be the last ride of the day is a service called the villager (no capital letters). With a name like that rather than a number, it can surely only be a Trent Barton service!
For the third time today, I am using an all-stops service when a faster service is available. The X38, jointly operated by Trent Barton and Arriva Derby, starts directly opposite. It provides a non-stop run between Burton and Derby in around 35 minutes, whereas this journey is scheduled to take 76.
The bus arrives in Burton High Street in good time to pick up a decent group of waiting passengers. It's a Volvo B7RLE Wright Eclipse Urban.
ABOVE: Trent Barton 740 (FJ09 BXE), a Volvo B7RLE Wright Eclipse Urban, arrives at the High Street stop in Burton, on "The Villager" service to Derby. The word "the" appears above the numberplate, next to the word "villager", but it's in white lettering, which doesn't work so well on a yellow background!
This is the 1520 departure - a point I have verified through the timetable in the bus stop, on BusTimes.org (below) and on Trent Barton's own website (also below). However, the driver departs at 1515.
This early departure, even though it shouldn't have happened, may be prudent as the school run has begun. Within the next three stops, the bus fills up with schoolchildren. Loading takes several minutes, such that, by the time we have finished loading at Burton railway station, we are back on schedule.
And when I say that the bus "fills up", I really mean it. There is no room for anyone else. Trent Barton reportedly "doesn't do" double-deckers, which is a shame, because this journey really needs one (it's scenic as well). No-one is actually left behind, but any scope for further passenger growth on this journey is non-existent.
To be fair, this particular group of schoolchildren are well-behaved, and they gradually disperse over the next 20 minutes or so of the journey.
About half an hour in, between Tutbury and Hatton, we cross the border from Staffordshire into Derbyshire. the villager really lives up to its name, carrying us through a succession of Staffordshire and Derbyshire villages. It's somewhere around here that I realise that we're going to be passing through Mickleover, and I decide to leave the bus here and try out the Trent Barton service known as the mickleover (again no capital letters) - so called because it links Derby and Mickleover. I don't know Mickleover, but the bus is very prominent if you're in Derby bus station - as I often seem to be!
Mickleover is big enough to qualify as a town. It's only two miles or so west of Derby, and records exist to show a settlement in the area from as long ago as the year 1011.
ABOVE: The Square, Mickleover
As someone who is not familiar with the mickleover route, I need to find the right bus stop. Assuming that "The Square" is broadly the town centre of Mickleover, it appears, at first glance, that buses come here first and then do a grand tour of the town's residential streets, before coming back to the town centre and on to Derby. That puts me at the top of the handle of a "frying pan" route (ie, one that runs 'up the handle' from Derby, 'round the pan' that is Mickleover, and back 'down the handle' to Derby).
So I'm not surprised to see a bus labelled "Derby" passing by on the opposite side of the road to where I'm waiting. I assume it will be back shortly.
ABOVE: An ADL Enviro200 MMC on "the mickleover" route turns onto Vicarage Road in Mickleover
But why does my bus stop talk about me being on the "blue route", when the buses are in a pink livery?
Well, it transpires that, whilst the mickleover is indeed a "frying pan" service, I'm not at the top of the handle; I'm actually halfway round the pan! the mickleover runs a "green route" and a "blue route" - green runs clockwise around the loop and blue runs anti-clockwise.
The distinction - I presume these are only used on outward journeys from Derby - is made by a circle of the appropriate colour that appears next to the destination on the front of the bus (I don't have a picture of this, but here's a fine "blue route" example that I've found on Flickr).
It's all a bit gimmicky and confusing to strangers. I don't know why we can't just have, say, "the mickleover 1" and "the mickleover 2" or similar, which would also benefit any intending passengers who might struggle to distinguish between the differing colours. Mind you, this isn't the worst example of a route naming of a Trent Barton service that I will discover on this journey...
Buses on this route are ADL Enviro200MMCs of 11.8 metres length - almost 39 feet long. The buses are very comfortable and the route is clearly a busy one, with a 10-minute frequency on weekdays and a 15-minute service on Sundays.
My service is whisks me to Derby in 26 minutes. There's a brief delay at the stop outside the bus station, as the two drivers agree who should go in first. For once, I'm on the winning side, and we pull into the bus station first, at 1650. There's a substantial queue waiting for the next outbound service (I count 25).
My hotel is extremely conveniently placed tonight - a Premier Inn around the back of the bus station. So I'm in my hotel room by 1700. On a summer day, I would probably go out for a local ride in the evening, but it's pitch dark so I just hunt down some food and call it a night. I have another day's travels planned tomorrow, and a theatre show in the evening...
END OF ACT ONE
CURTAIN DOWN
CURTAIN DOWN
BELOW: A diagram showing broadly the journey covered in this article
