David Slater (Spoddendale)'s photos with the keyword: Midland Red

The cover of the advance copy of the Summer 1972 Associated Motorways timetable. The final issue would feature a cover of higher grade paper colour printed. The cover of my very care worn copy is now almost detached. Associated Motorways would also produce formal licensing/administration documents (back then spirit duplicated on foolscap paper) which included the name of the company operating the different services and I noted this information within my copy of the timetable. The list in question is also included on this site.

The Yelloway ‘Devonian’ service originally travelled via Gloucester and Bristol. At Gloucester connections to Red and White’s services were offered and at Bristol to those of Greyhound Motors. From Saturday 22 August 1936 the Yelloway service was diverted to serve Cheltenham and thus connect with the Associated Motorways hub. This leaflet was issued showing the timetables of the connecting services then available. The map on the cover was from earlier years and did not actually show the route of the Yelloway service which was summer only operating four days a week (plus the overnight service southbound on Friday nights from Rochdale). So this leaflet for the new arrangements was only current for six weeks until the last weekend in September.

The Associated Motorways timetable book cover (left is the rear cover and right is the front cover) for the Summer of 1949. So that no one member company would derive benefit from the publicity the consortium used orange, green and black as its house colours. Details of the Yelloway service from Lancashire, whilst contained in the timetable itself since 1936 wasn’t shown on the front cover map.

The Associated Motorways timetable book cover (left is the rear cover and right is the front cover) for the Summer of 1954. The route map on the front cover has been significantly expanded since that of the 1949 issue and includes the Ribble, Western SMT and Scottish Omnibuses services into Scotland from the North of England and those of the Yorkshire Services pool into Yorkshire from Birmingham. So that no one member company would derive benefit from the publicity the consortium used orange, green and black as its house colours.

These pages were from the Associated Motorways Summer 1954 timetable book and show the timings for the Gloucester-Cheltenham-London service. A point of curiosity I find is that the summer only quicker direct Swansea to London day service is included in this timetable. As far as I am aware I don’t think that service picked up from High Wycombe onwards toward London. The service is also shown in the Swansea to Cheltenham timetable and yet the direct Swansea to London night service which was operated all the year round isn’t shown thus in either nor indeed any other timetable, only in the two timetables either side of Cheltenham. (See next slide for the Swansea to Cheltenham timetable).

These pages were from the Associated Motorways Summer 1954 timetable book and show the timings for the Swansea to Cheltenham service. The summer only quicker direct Swansea to London day service is also included in this timetable and also in that for the Cheltenham to London timetable. Strangely the direct Swansea to London night service which was operated all the year round isn’t shown in either nor indeed any other timetable, only in the two timetables either side of Cheltenham. (See previous slide for the Cheltenham to London service timetable).

The Associated Motorways timetable book cover (left is the rear cover and right is the front cover) for the Winter period 1954/1955 was similar to that used in Summer of 1954 although this copy was not colour printed. I am not sure if this was an advance copy style or whether it was an economical final copy. Certainly in later years I don’t recall there being an advance copy issue for winter as there was for summer.

A typical timetable layout from an Associated Motorways timetable book. Each page featured a particular service usually on adjacent pages, each direction having a page of its own. In addition to the times for the particular service there was abridged content of key destinations available by connecting at Cheltenham. This example from the summer 1972 issue covers the Great Yarmouth to Cheltenham service worked by Eastern Counties. During the winter months this service was reduced to a single service in each direction between Norwich and Cheltenham forming part of the 1430 hub.

This is a photocopy of what was the lead sheet of an almost full set of formal licensing/administration documents produced by Associated Motorways for the Summer 1972 - back then these were spirit duplicated on foolscap paper. The sheet contains a list of all the services upon which I wrote the initials of the operating company alongside the service number. As far as I know the service numbers were never carried on the coaches but were prominent in the timetables. There were certain intentional omissions from the document set. The only real missing details are service D19 (Worcester-London) (perhaps Midland Red?) and service K41 (Oxford-Portsmouth), I couldn’t find reference to the latter in the timetable and I often wondered if it was the former South Midland holiday service placed under Associated Motorways by NBC. Of the others, Yelloway handled the licensing/administration/operation of joint services G31, H51, H60, J42, K31 and K46. Ribble likewise for joint service H33. I can’t say exactly which of the Yorkshire based operators provided the administration of service H32 (the ‘South West Clipper’ pool) – I have been told it was Yorkshire Traction. Service H31 was jointly operated with Northern General and United and would presumably have been administered by them.

The National Bus Company came into being in 1969. A few years later NBC created National Travel which led to the countrywide coach network that later became National Express. The services of the Associated Motorways consortium became part of the network. The Winter 1972/1973 timetable featured the NBC logo but still retained the prominent Associated Motorways name.

The National Bus Company came into being in 1969. A few years later NBC created National Travel which led to the countrywide coach network that later became National Express. The services of the Associated Motorways consortium became part of that network. The Summer 1973 timetable saw a significant image change with the National branding being more prominent with the Associated Motorways name taking a lesser role. I think this issue would have been the last one published under the auspices of Associated Motorways at Cheltenham as National Travel produced a countrywide coach guide for the following Winter 1973/1974 period.

Friday 10 April 2015 (0826) - Stagecoach Midlands (Midland Red) 50246 (SV62 BBJ), a Van Hool TDX27 Astromega new in September 2012 to Stagecoach Bluebird (Scotland), seen near Newmarket Road Park and Ride site, Cambridge. It was working the 0540 Megabus service M37 from Birmingham via Cambridge (0805) to Norwich (UEA 0945 and Bus Station 1000). It would return at 1220 running through to Cardiff (due 1850).

Friday 28 February 2014 (1539) - This building was once the ‘Stratford Blue’ (Stratford-upon-Avon Blue Motors Limited) bus garage, the rearward half (with darker and original asbestos roof) is occupied by the local branch of the ‘Kwik Fit’ tyre company. The forward half (with the newer lighter coloured roof) is currently vacant since ‘Much ado about toys’ ceased trading in October 2013. I imagine the buses entered the garage through what is the Kwik Fit doorway and left the garage by the front door leading on to Bridgefoot. (P.S. Kwik Fit later expanded to also occupy what had been the toy shop area). ‘Stratford Blue’ was one of the smaller British Electric Traction Group bus companies owned by, but operated separately from, what was one of the largest British bus companies - ‘Midland Red’ (BMMO). ‘Stratford Blue’ operated around 40 vehicles and, in addition to the Stratford garage, had a smaller one in Kineton. The company was used for junior managers to gain operating experience on their way up the career ladder. We stayed at the Premier Inn, the fawn coloured building beyond and parallel to the old garage. Our room window was the seventh from the left.

Thursday 27 February 2014 (1127) - This building was once the ‘Stratford Blue ’(Stratford-upon-Avon Blue Motors Limited) bus garage, the rearward half (with darker and original asbestos roof) is occupied by the local branch of the ‘Kwik Fit’ tyre company. The forward half (with the newer lighter coloured roof) is currently vacant since ‘Much ado about toys’ ceased trading in October 2013. I imagine the buses entered the garage through what is the Kwik Fit doorway and left the garage by the front door leading on to Bridgefoot. (P.S. Kwik Fit later expanded to also occupy what had been the toy shop area). ‘Stratford Blue’ was one of the smaller British Electric Traction Group bus companies owned by, but operated separately from, what was one of the largest British bus companies - ‘Midland Red’ (BMMO). ‘Stratford Blue’ operated around 40 vehicles and, in addition to the Stratford garage had a smaller one in Kineton. We stayed at the Premier Inn, the fawn coloured building beyond and parallel to the old garage. Our room window was the sixth from the left.

Thursday 27 February 2014 (1547) - The view from our room window of the Premier Inn at Stratford-upon-Avon. The rooftop alongside was once the bus garage of ‘Stratford Blue’ (Stratford-upon-Avon Blue Motors Limited). The rear part of the roof which covered the local branch of the ‘Kwik Fit’ tyre company appeared to remain from the bus garage days. The front part had been replaced over the part which had housed ‘Much ado about toys’ a large toy and model shop which unfortunately ceased trading in October 2013. (P.S. Kwik Fit later expanded to also occupy what had been the toy shop area). The garden and car park of the Red Lion pub (centre left) formed the ‘Stratford Blue’ bus station. Today Johnsons Coaches of Henley-in-Arden is a very active company providing bus services not only in the town but also to other towns in the West Midlands and Warwickshire. One of their Optare Solos is setting out on a town service. The River Avon runs across the photograph in the distance beyond the narrow boats in the canal basin. The Stratford Canal starts here and forms a waterway link to the West Midlands and beyond.

Thursday 27 February 2014 (1538) - This shop front was once the front door of the ‘Stratford Blue’ (Stratford-upon-Avon Blue Motors Limited) bus garage. ‘Much ado about toys’ unfortunately ceased trading in October 2013 so I was unable to have a look inside. However, the rear part of the building is active as the home to the local branch of the ‘Kwik Fit’ tyre company. (P.S. Kwik Fit later expanded to also occupy what had been the toy shop area). ‘Stratford Blue’ was one of the smaller British Electric Traction Group bus companies owned by, but operated separately from, what was one of the largest British bus companies - ‘Midland Red’ (BMMO). ‘Stratford Blue’ operated around 40 vehicles and, in addition to the Stratford garage had a smaller one in Kineton. We stayed at the Premier Inn, the entrance to which is beneath the canopy on the right of the photo. Our room overlooked the roof of the old garage property.

Thursday 27 February 2014 (1537) - Stratford-upon-Avon: The garden and car park of the Red Lion pub(extreme right) were once part of the ‘Stratford Blue’ bus station and the bus garage was the building across the road (beyond the traffic light). The rear part of the former garage is occupied by the ‘Kwik Fit’ tyre company although the front part was now empty following the bankruptcy of a large toy and model shop (‘Much ado about toys’) which closed in late 2013. The colourful posters remained in situ. (P.S. Kwik Fit later expanded to also occupy what had been the toy shop area). ‘Stratford Blue’ (Stratford-upon-Avon Blue Motors Limited) was one of the smaller British Electric Traction Group bus companies owned by, but operated separately from, what was one of the largest British bus companies - ‘Midland Red’ (BMMO). ‘Stratford Blue’ operated around 40 vehicles and, in addition to the Stratford garage had a smaller one in Kineton. We stayed at the Premier Inn - our room was the seventh window from the left above the roof line of the former garage.

Thursday 27 February 2014 (1537) - Stratford-upon-Avon: The garden and car park of the Red Lion pub were once part of the ‘Stratford Blue’ bus station and the bus garage was the building across the road (beyond the green traffic light). The rear part of the former garage is occupied by the ‘Kwik Fit’ tyre company although the front part was now empty following the bankruptcy of a large toy and model shop (‘Much ado about toys’) which closed in late 2013. The colourful posters remained in situ. (P.S. Kwik Fit later expanded to also occupy what had been the toy shop area). ‘Stratford Blue’ (Stratford-upon-Avon Blue Motors Limited) was one of the smaller British Electric Traction Group bus companies owned by, but operated separately from, what was one of the largest British bus companies - ‘Midland Red’ (BMMO). ‘Stratford Blue’ operated around 40 vehicles and, in addition to the Stratford garage had a smaller one in Kineton. We stayed at the Premier Inn - our room was the seventh window from the left above the roof line of the former garage.