A Visit to Aldridge Transport Museum

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Aldridge Bus Window

Just recently I came across a mobile app geared towards classic car and motoring enthusiasts here in the UK. Now to my knowledge that sort of thing doesn’t get made every day so I was pretty eager to give it a try. I’m glad I did because I’ve already discovered loads of interesting places that I never knew existed, including (as you might have guessed) the Aldridge Transport Museum. I’ll tell you more about the app shortly, but for now let’s visit the museum.

It was but a week ago that the sun was shining and I was blasting through the countryside in a gorgeous V8 MGB, but on the morning of my visit to Aldridge the mist was thick as I pulled up outside the museum. To the chaps inside I must have made a very ‘Stars in Their Eyes’ sort of entrance as I wafted through the doors. Tonight Matthew, I’m going to be… Looking at buses!

Through the Mists of Time

Perhaps it was the misty morning playing havoc with time, but stepping in to the museum was like stepping in to the past. The building, though unassuming from the outside, houses a treasure trove of vintage commercial vehicles and buses, a scattering of old bicycles, several motorcycles, milk floats, horse drawn carts, and even an E-Type Jaguar.

Yet, the feel of the place puts me in mind of an old bus shed. All around is the paraphernalia of a working depot. Diesel pumps, ticketing machines, radiator grilles, conductors uniforms, and framed portraits of station managers through the ages fill every nook and cranny of the space.

In the workshop something heavy is being hit with a hammer as courting pigeons clatter across the corrugated sheet roof. I can hear quiet chatter about imperial socket measurements and, as if to complete the scene, every few minutes someone drops a spanner on the concrete floor. If vintage commercials are your cup of tea then this whole place is enough to make your knees go wobbly.

Heavy Metal

It’s not all heavy metal at Aldridge though. Squirrelled away between the trucks and buses are some smaller displays, which in truth were my favourites. Whenever I’ve been to a show or a museum I always play the game of asking myself which vehicle I’d take home if I could. As a petrolhead you’d think the obvious choice would be the E-Type, but in this instance it isn’t. That particular honour goes to a wonderfully patinaed MK1 Ford Transit pickup, although the 1948 Scammell Mechanical Horse comes a close second. I’m just not sure it would be so great on the motorway home.

Aldridge MK1 Transit
Aldridge Scammell Mechanical Horse

All Aboard

Having mooched around the museum for a while, I ended up back amongst the buses wondering if I was allowed to step aboard or not. There were no signs suggesting an answer either way, and all the museum chaps appeared to be drinking tea or hitting things with hammers. Deciding it better to ask forgiveness than permission, I hopped aboard an original bright red Routemaster London bus and wound my way up the twisting stairs to the top deck.

Now I’m not a religious fellow, but I do appreciate the quiet solitude and history in old churches. As I sat at the back of the empty top deck, the view forwards put me in mind of church pews. The air was cool and still, and the sense of history contained there in this living icon was almost palpable. I think if I was to design a church, it would look a lot like this.

Empty Bus

Finding Salvation

So did I find salvation there amongst the buses and displays of Aldridge Transport Museum? Well… no, but I did find an excellent way to pass a few hours in the West Midlands, and the £4 entry fee represents good value for money as far as I’m concerned. Sure, there’s no fancy on-site cafe or interactive touch screen presentations, but it’s worth the entry fee for the atmosphere alone. Besides, I don’t mind laying out a few coins if it helps to ensure these types of vehicles find salvation of their own.

Cars with Character

I found out about the Aldridge Transport Museum on the ‘Cars With Character Tours‘ app, which I’ve been using quite a lot lately. It’s chocked full of interesting places to visit if you’re a motoring enthusiast. There are museums, race circuits, motoring-friendly cafes, and plenty more besides.

The app also includes an expanding portfolio of ready made tours which follow scenic routes and take in places of interest along the way. It’s really great to see an app like this appearing, and I’m looking forward to seeing where it goes in the future.

If you’d like to download the Cars With Character Tours app, you can do so on the Apple store or the Google Play store, and you can find out more about the idea behind the app on the Cars With Character website.

Aldridge Bicycle

Come Along for the Ride

Thanks for reading this blog post! I hope that you enjoyed coming along for the ride. Let me know in the comments if you know of any other interesting motoring places to visit. If you’d like to stick around here for a while, please do check out some more of our blog posts.

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In the meantime though I’ll leave you with a few more photos from the museum. Enjoy, and see you soon.