Nottingham Trolleybus Group

[Bilbraborn 1,594]

I am not surprised at 24 70 seaters an hour, especially in rush hour. Most people used public transport in them days. The little lady!!! at Nottm Council would be on a permanent high. Remember, there was a lot of work at Bulwell with Brick works, plant pot makers and textiles etc. Lots of Mills at Basford as well. The poor old conductor would have been fitter than Hussein Bolt.

[BulwellBrian 107]

Re #23, I think the 44 route was changed some time in the late 50s or early 60s. Until then I am pretty sure it was Parliament Street in both directions. After the change it still went along Parliament Street heading to Colwick Road, but in the other direction it was diverted down King Street, Old Market Square (i.e. south side of Long Row) to join the 43 route at the Bell. I would hazard a guess that the reason was Bulwell traffic from the OMS outstripping the capacity even of the 43 at its 2-3 minute headway (yes, that is 24 x 70-seater trolleybuses an hour!) It might also have reduced the need to supplement the service with the 42 short working that turned back at Basford Northern Baths.

I don't recall the 44 ever going via George Street - they didn't like 6-wheelers taking that sharp left turn, which is why they were never used on the 40 until the very end. I don't think there was a connection in the wiring allowing a right turn from South Parade into Beastmarket Hill, though I stand to be corrected on that.

Stepen is correct, I think at one time in the early 1950's that the 42 ran from the Old Market Square to Bulwell Market.

I also think that the automatic point changers were in use when it was possible and date back a long time, they required the trolley to ether coast over the switch or take power depending on the required route. There was one of the pull handle point switches on the hill down to Bulwell Market to seperate the 43's from the 44's, they couldn't use an auto one as the hill was quite steep and all trolleys would be coasting with the brakes on.

[WAB 1]

Didn't think there were any wires up or down Market Street.

[Cliff Ton 10,449]

There's a map from the 1940s in this thread from a while ago. http://nottstalgia.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=7151&hl=bus+routes

[BulwellBrian 107]

There were wires on Market Street, but not normally used.

[Andrea 5]

With all the discussion both here and elsewhere about the tram extensions I just feel it's such a pity the trolleybus is not being considered for Nottingham. Surely much cheaper and easier to install, can run on the road, in bus lanes, on its own private roads, a much better bet for routes where a disused railway line isn't available.

[Bilbraborn 1,594]

A lot of people have said this. But it is too cheap. Remember, it is not their money they are spending so it does not matter to them.

[Smiffy49 590]

Can anyone tell me if it was possible to catch a trolley bus from Trent Bridge to somewhere near Victoria Station in the late 1950's?

If so what service would this have been. If not where would be the nearest point to Victoria be (within walking distance) or would a change of bus be necessary?

Many thanks in anticipation of an answer.

Smiffy

[Cliff Ton 10,449]

See the map mentioned in #29

[Commo 1,292]

Smiffy, how about a 47 Wells Rd and get off at the Market?

[denshaw 2,871]

The 45 went from Trent bridge, up London rd and along Parliament st.

[StephenFord 866]

Smiffy49 - in a word, yes. The 41 started at Trent Bridge, ran via Arkwright Street, Carrington Street (passing the Midland station), Lister Gate, Albert Street, Wheeler Gate, up to the Old Market Square, right along Long Row, left up Queen Street, right along Upper Parliament Street, left into Milton Street (past the front of Victoria station) then Mansfield Road, Sherwood Rise, Nottingham Road, Valley Road, Church Street Basford, Alpine Street, Percy Street, Stockhill Lane, Nuthall Road to terminate at Cinderhill Cross Roads. It was nowhere near as frequent as the 43 - probably about every 15 minutes I guess, supplemented between Queen Street and Nottingham Road by the 36 (turned at Valley Road) and 37 (turned at Haydn Road).

As Denshaw says, the 45 went via London Road and Lower Parliament Street, so that you could drop off at Parliament Street bridge, where there was a side entrance to Victoria Station until the early 60s, and of course the main entrance was only just round the corner. However the 41 started from the Embankment, whereas the 45 started at the Globe cinema (until the road layout was changed?)

[Smiffy49 590]

:biggrin:Many thanks for the information everyone, a very comprehensive reply, it's just what I was looking for.

[DAVIDW 1,681]

There is this letter in the Evening Post from 1942 about the lack of a service between the two stations .

[DAVIDW 1,681]

Funnily enough a Chris Ward has just posted this fabulous video and it shows trolleybuses going by the Victoria Station ! Plus other city centre scenes .

Not sure , but may have to be on Facebook to view .

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10151930374413947

[Trevor S 2,003]

Thanks DAVIDW....A great video that brought back memories of a Nottingham I last saw some 50 years ago this year.

[firbeck 859]

I was the guy with Firbeck on those sorties. We did a few bike rides to Plumtree to do our stuff including blocking the doorway to the station goods shed with massive planks held in place by 6 inch nails. This was because the above mentioned TD4 was stored in there. I believe there may have been a Burton and Ashby tram in on the equation. It was a long while ago but great days. I was fortunate to be able to drive some of the old Leyland and Daimler back-enders less than 10 years later in Glasgow. But I digress. I was with Firbeck on that last Trolleybus (in service), but my granddad did better. He was among the Civic party on the official last one the next day.

We 'fitted' the planks across the doorway on New Years Day 1966 having gone over there on the tandem, I remember because it was unusually warm, there were bees flying about and we sat outside in our shirtsleeves to have our butties. The tram was Derby No1 which had come out of someone's garden in Derby, it was unusually 4'0'' gauge and sat on a special section of track in the old Plumtree station cattle dock, minus it's top deck. Crich were desperate to get their hands on it at the time, I never understood why it ended up at Plumtree and not Crich, mind you, they have it now.

We went round to see your grandad in the hope he could get us on board the 'official' last trolleybus, he couldn't and commented that ''half those boggers in the Civic Party have never even been on one''

We went cap in hand to ask that vile git of a headmaster of ours, Williams, to let us off lessons for the morning to go and see it, he refused, threatening us with expulsion if we didn't turn up for school that day, honesty clearly didn't pay with him.

[Bilbraborn 1,594]

I have a railway publication somewhere with a photograph of that goods shed at Plumtree taken in the 90s and I'm sure there are still some of those planks which we installed.

By the way, Brian Dominique is a member at the Midland Railway Trust at Butterley and lives nearby. He has a model railway in his garden.

[Smiffy49 590]

In the 1950's both sets of my Grandparents used to live next door to each other adjacent to the trolley bus terminus on Wilford Road, the Meadows.

The bus stop was literally right outside, complete with a square clock on a post. Next to this was a red post office box.

Being quite young I never thought of it as strange and just assumed that everyone's Grandparents lived next door to each other !

During visits to see them we would sit in the front room and watch the buses (number 40??) come and go. The destination was I think either Wells Road or Ransome Road?

These Victorian houses all had three levels and the top floors were mostly unused. Sometimes we would venture up to the top floor to "explore" or watch a travelling crane in the railway yard opposite.

Another game was to take down the numbers of the buses and see how long it took to complete the journey there and back.

I remember the sides of the trolley buses had advertisements for Littlewoods or Vernons pools, win £10,000 !!

My Father has a photograph he took from one of the top floor windows in 1940, it shows the terminus and what looks like chimney pots in the road.

He has told me that these were smoke generators for use prior to air raids.

A story that was always relayed to us on nearly every visit concerned a war time event. Apparently during the war a fairground existed, either on the site of or near the Cremorne pub opposite the terminus. One night a bomb dropped in the area of the fairground and blew someone right over the top of the house. I have never been able to find anything about this so do not no if it is true, or just a "story" for our wide eyes.

Across the road next to the entrance to the embankment stood a blue (Tardis type) police box.

We would sometimes look inside, but never found a policeman in there ! Occasionally we would see a locomotive cross the road in front of the toll bridge.

Another "story" we were told related to the statue just inside the embankment gates. Apparently on dark, murky afternoons or evenings he would step down from the platform and walk around searching for children who had not gone home on time, the story worked, we were never late !!

I would love to know if any photographs exist of the terminus area, in particular of the two houses numbered 230 & 228 Wilford Road.

More to follow on this when I remember.........

Smiffy

[firbeck 859]

Right, let's see if this works:-

Well, it seems to have worked in a fashion, not much control over things though. More to follow.

[firbeck 859]

Some more stuff, I thought this was the Tax disc I had away from the last trolley, but clearly not, 501 was scrapped nearly 50 years ago

The rest speaks for itself:-

[Cliff Ton 10,449]

In the 1950's both sets of my Grandparents used to live next door to each other adjacent to the trolley bus terminus on Wilford Road, the Meadows.

The bus stop was literally right outside, complete with a square clock on a post. Next to this was a red post office box.

Not the best photo I've ever come up with or posted, but I think it might ring a few bells with you.

[Smiffy49 590]

Wow ! thanks for posting those newspaper clipping & pictures etc.

Did not realise the trolley buses were still about in 1966.

Behind the 40 trolley bus you can just glimpse a place called Walsall Conduits, not sure what they did there?

I think the two chimneys in the right background were the old Wilford Power Station.

The road on the right was Colliery Road, the two houses mentioned in #44 (230 & 228 Wilford Road) were on the right, but out of shot.

Smiffy

[Bilbraborn 1,594]

Got that yellow ticket still Pete.

[Bilbraborn 1,594]

I see you have the photo with my grand-dad on it. I was in the next hospital bed to the guy in charge of fixing the trolleys. In the City hospital around 1981.