Transport Museum Wythall Launches Petition
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Published: 02/09/2019
FUTURE OF HERITAGE BUS SERVICE THREATENED BY
BIRMINGHAM CITY COUNCIL CLEAN AIR ZONE
Transport Museum Wythall Launches Petition
Transport Museum Wythall (TMW) is a living museum specialising in historic vehicles from Birmingham and the surrounding Midlands. It holds an operator’s licence allowing it to offer the public rides on examples of its heritage bus fleet, some of which are over 60 years old.
TMW service 750 to Birmingham city centre, which runs only 11 times a year to serve special event days at its Wythall site in Worcestershire, is under threat from the Birmingham Clean Air Zone (CAZ).
West Midlands citizens make good use of this service, travelling by public transport into the city to connect with the 750 instead of travelling directly to Wythall (in 2018 some 800 passengers visited the Museum this way rather than travel by car), its popularity sometimes demanding two buses. A small ticket charge covers its running costs.
Birmingham City Council will introduce a CAZ covering all roads within the A4540 Middleway Ring Road from July 1st 2020. All diesel-engined buses entering the CAZ must comply or face a daily charge of £50 per vehicle per day.
Wythall’s heritage buses cannot practically meet the new emissions limits without destroying their originality.
Birmingham City Council has agreed an exemption applying to historic vehicles (aged over 40 years) but this will not apply to Wythall’s vehicles as the museum is deemed to run its vehicles commercially, for profit.
As a Charity Incorporated Organisation (CIO) run 100% by volunteers, TMW does not make a profit – all income is ploughed back into restoring and maintaining its heritage vehicle fleet and running the transport museum. Birmingham City Council refuses to recognise this fact and also appears not to appreciate the work of the heritage sector, the value it brings to the city and its positive affect on tourism.
The City of London and several other UK local authorities have already recognised the benefits of transport heritage and have legislated for concessions to similar vehicles in their emissions zones.
TMW requested that the council exempt this service but to date, this has been denied so it has launched a petition at wythall.org.uk/petition.
Denis Chick, TMW Press Officer, said: ‘As a 100% volunteer operation, we work very hard to preserve the heritage of public transport in the West Midlands. Last year the museum attracted over 10,000 visitors with over 1,000 of these from educational visits. Paying a £50 charge for each vehicle on 11 days of the year would take up to £1,100 out of our income. Every penny raised is re-invested into the museum and its collection to ensure its sustainability so we are asking for public support through our petition as, without an exemption, the 750 service will have to be withdrawn.’
TMW respects the need for a focus on improving air quality across the United Kingdom and the actions being taken to tackle the worst polluters, particularly in urban areas. However, running this service on just 11 days in the year will have no measurable effect on pollution in the City of Birmingham.
Photograph: 1953 Birmingham City Transport Guy Arab (in City Centre)
