National Express West Midland Route 66, 66A and 66E
Encyclopedia
Pre 1990
WMPTE routes 43 (Old Square to Nechells) and 95 (Congreve Street to Ladywood), whose combined routes were similar to the pre-2010 routes 66 and 66A for the section from Nechells to Soho.Recent history
Around 1995 the route was operated with the last journey departing Sutton Coldfield at 18:30, the last journey into Sutton departed Ladywood at 1750 and ran into Sutton, arriving at 1845, however this returned to the garage empty. The route at the time was operated by twelve two-step entrance single decks, E F G and H registration plate 'Leyland DAF Lynx's'Around 2000 the 'Lynx's', were gradually phased out and National Express West Midlands
National Express West Midlands
National Express West Midlands , formerly known as Travel West Midlands , is the trade name of West Midlands Travel Ltd , a company which operates bus services from depots in the cities of Birmingham, and Wolverhampton, as well as the boroughs of Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull and Walsall in the West...
invested in low-floored single decks, using around eighteen on the route at one stage.
In the later years route 66 was simplified and now used just ten low-floor Mercedes-Benz O405
Mercedes-Benz O405
The Mercedes-Benz O 405 was a highly successful single-decker bus chassis built by Mercedes-Benz from the mid-1980s to the early 2000s. It was the replacement for the Mercedes-Benz O305 chassis and was widely used in Europe, Australia and Singapore....
single decks.
Service 111 was created in 2004 and is the extended vision of 66 (66A) via the 111/A route into Sutton Coldfield. It is worth noting however, that in Boldmere route 66A runs from Boldmere Road via Stonehouse Road, Monmouth Drive and Summerville Road, joining Jockey Road near The Horse & Jockey pub, whereas route 111 and 111A operate direct via Jockey Road into Sutton Coldfield.
Up until 2010, the route was extended across the city centre to serve Ladywood, however this ceased and is now served by NXWM service 80 to West Bromwich via the old 66 route up to Ladywood.
The terminus is now fixed at Priory Queensway.
Present
Service are provided every 15 minutes between Birmingham City Centre and Erdington with joint services 66 and 66A.Currently National Express West Midlands
National Express West Midlands
National Express West Midlands , formerly known as Travel West Midlands , is the trade name of West Midlands Travel Ltd , a company which operates bus services from depots in the cities of Birmingham, and Wolverhampton, as well as the boroughs of Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull and Walsall in the West...
(NXWM) operate the 66 Monday - Saturday at a 30 minute frequency during daytime hours (0630-1815). On evenings, NXWM operate the service at an hourly frequency (only to Starcity).
Service 66A operates Monday - Sunday daytime at a 30 minute frequency with evenings operate an hourly frequency, making a half hourly timetable with the 66E. Sunday daytime half-hourly, with the evening services from 1847 ex-Birmingham being every hour.
Route 111
Route 111 was the full extension off route 66 before 2004, when National Express West MidlandsNational Express West Midlands
National Express West Midlands , formerly known as Travel West Midlands , is the trade name of West Midlands Travel Ltd , a company which operates bus services from depots in the cities of Birmingham, and Wolverhampton, as well as the boroughs of Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull and Walsall in the West...
(NXWM) split the route due to reliability problems. Route 111 was operated exactly the same as the present 66A is to-date. However due to Perry Barr picking up route 111, since then the 111 has gone though a number of changes. This means that it could even now be considered a route in its own right. However, as the 111A has just be introduced, it had brought the Daytime operations slightly back in-line with the 66A route.
111 operates from Goosemore Lane into Gravelly Lane and follows this into Summer Road to SixWays Erdington.
111A operates from Goosemore Lane into Gravelly Lane, then Station Road, Edwards Road, Orphanage Road, Sutton New Road to SixWays Erdington.
In August 2010 the service was withdrawn and replaced by the 66A. This was to absorb the 68 route in Kingstanding by service 66. The route now is operated every 30 minutes during day time on both routes.
Routes
Service 66 (Monday to Saturday Daytime)- Birmingham City CentreBirmingham City CentreBirmingham city centre is the business, retail and leisure hub of Birmingham, England. Following the removal of the Inner Ring Road, the city centre is newly defined as being the area within the Middle Ring Road. Birmingham city centre is undergoing massive redevelopment with the Big City Plan...
- NechellsNechellsNechells is an area in inner-city Birmingham, England, with a population of 27,969 . It is also a ward within the formal district of Ladywood. Nechells local government ward includes areas, for example parts of Birmingham city centre, which are not part of the historic district of Nechells as such...
- Star City, BirminghamStar City, BirminghamStar City is a family leisure and entertainment complex in Birmingham, England. It is located in the north east of the city very close to Junction 6 of the M6 motorway , and Aston Train Station.- Development :...
- ErdingtonErdingtonErdington is a suburb northeast of Birmingham city centre, England and bordering Sutton Coldfield. It is also a council constituency, managed by its own district committee...
- Perry CommonPerry CommonPerry Common is an area of Kingstanding, in the constituency of Erdington, Birmingham, England.College High School is located in Perry Common as are the Hawthorn Shopping Centre on Hawthorn Road and Witton Lakes....
- New OscottNew OscottNew Oscott is an area of Birmingham, England.It was named after the Oscott area of Birmingham, when St. Mary's College, the Roman Catholic seminary, moved from that site to the new one. The original then became known as Old Oscott....
- BoldmereBoldmereBoldmere is a residential area of Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham, England. It is bordered by New Oscott, Sutton Park, Wylde Green and Erdington, and is in the ward of Sutton Vesey.- Toponymy :...
- Sutton ColdfieldSutton ColdfieldSutton Coldfield is a suburb of Birmingham, in the West Midlands of England. Sutton is located about from central Birmingham but has borders with Erdington and Kingstanding. Sutton is in the northeast of Birmingham, with a population of 105,000 recorded in the 2001 census...
Service 66A (Daytimes, Evenings and Sundays)
- Birmingham City CentreBirmingham City CentreBirmingham city centre is the business, retail and leisure hub of Birmingham, England. Following the removal of the Inner Ring Road, the city centre is newly defined as being the area within the Middle Ring Road. Birmingham city centre is undergoing massive redevelopment with the Big City Plan...
- NechellsNechellsNechells is an area in inner-city Birmingham, England, with a population of 27,969 . It is also a ward within the formal district of Ladywood. Nechells local government ward includes areas, for example parts of Birmingham city centre, which are not part of the historic district of Nechells as such...
- Star City, BirminghamStar City, BirminghamStar City is a family leisure and entertainment complex in Birmingham, England. It is located in the north east of the city very close to Junction 6 of the M6 motorway , and Aston Train Station.- Development :...
- ErdingtonErdingtonErdington is a suburb northeast of Birmingham city centre, England and bordering Sutton Coldfield. It is also a council constituency, managed by its own district committee...
- Perry CommonPerry CommonPerry Common is an area of Kingstanding, in the constituency of Erdington, Birmingham, England.College High School is located in Perry Common as are the Hawthorn Shopping Centre on Hawthorn Road and Witton Lakes....
- BoldmereBoldmereBoldmere is a residential area of Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham, England. It is bordered by New Oscott, Sutton Park, Wylde Green and Erdington, and is in the ward of Sutton Vesey.- Toponymy :...
- Sutton ColdfieldSutton ColdfieldSutton Coldfield is a suburb of Birmingham, in the West Midlands of England. Sutton is located about from central Birmingham but has borders with Erdington and Kingstanding. Sutton is in the northeast of Birmingham, with a population of 105,000 recorded in the 2001 census...
Service 66E (Early Morning, Evenings and Sundays)
- Birmingham City CentreBirmingham City CentreBirmingham city centre is the business, retail and leisure hub of Birmingham, England. Following the removal of the Inner Ring Road, the city centre is newly defined as being the area within the Middle Ring Road. Birmingham city centre is undergoing massive redevelopment with the Big City Plan...
- NechellsNechellsNechells is an area in inner-city Birmingham, England, with a population of 27,969 . It is also a ward within the formal district of Ladywood. Nechells local government ward includes areas, for example parts of Birmingham city centre, which are not part of the historic district of Nechells as such...
- Star City, BirminghamStar City, BirminghamStar City is a family leisure and entertainment complex in Birmingham, England. It is located in the north east of the city very close to Junction 6 of the M6 motorway , and Aston Train Station.- Development :...