WMPTE 96L, St James' Square, Wolverhampton, 1970
Well-patronised WMPTE 96L arrives in St James' Square, Wolverhampton having journeyed from Walsall. The Walsall based bus is looking careworn despite only being just over two years old. At this time the 29 bus service was still a conductor operated bus route, as most routes were in 1970. Indeed, 96L would not be fitted out for one-man-operation (OMO) until May 1971.
The people of Wolverhampton would soon become familiar with these pale-blue Walsall Fleetlines, as quite a number of them were transferred into Wolverhampton during 1971 to assist with the conversion of selected bus services to OMO. The first of these ex Walsall buses were 80-3L/89L/107L arriving between January to March 1971 after receiving OMO modifications. In the October and November more of these ex Walsall buses arrived in Wolverhampton, these being 78L/79L/84-88L/90L/106L/108-114L. More would follow, but 96L would always remain a Walsall based bus until its demise in October 1978.
St James' Square had long been the terminal point for the Wolverhampton – Willenhall - Walsall bus services. Until 1965, it had been a jointly operated trolleybus service. Even under the WMPTE the 29 (later 529) remained a Walsall/Wolverhampton joint operated bus route for many years.
In 1980, the terminal point at St James' Square was moved to a newly built bus station constructed off nearby Horsley Fields, St James' Square being lost to re-development.
WMPTE 96L, St James' Square, Wolverhampton, 1970
Well-patronised WMPTE 96L arrives in St James' Square, Wolverhampton having journeyed from Walsall. The Walsall based bus is looking careworn despite only being just over two years old. At this time the 29 bus service was still a conductor operated bus route, as most routes were in 1970. Indeed, 96L would not be fitted out for one-man-operation (OMO) until May 1971.
The people of Wolverhampton would soon become familiar with these pale-blue Walsall Fleetlines, as quite a number of them were transferred into Wolverhampton during 1971 to assist with the conversion of selected bus services to OMO. The first of these ex Walsall buses were 80-3L/89L/107L arriving between January to March 1971 after receiving OMO modifications. In the October and November more of these ex Walsall buses arrived in Wolverhampton, these being 78L/79L/84-88L/90L/106L/108-114L. More would follow, but 96L would always remain a Walsall based bus until its demise in October 1978.
St James' Square had long been the terminal point for the Wolverhampton – Willenhall - Walsall bus services. Until 1965, it had been a jointly operated trolleybus service. Even under the WMPTE the 29 (later 529) remained a Walsall/Wolverhampton joint operated bus route for many years.
In 1980, the terminal point at St James' Square was moved to a newly built bus station constructed off nearby Horsley Fields, St James' Square being lost to re-development.