Transport Museum Wythall opens for a tour and bus ride – virtually!

Published: 30/04/2020

Transport Museum Wythall opens for a tour and bus ride – virtually!

• Enjoy an introductory video to the world of buses and a virtual tour of the museum
• Be one of the first to take a ride on 1931 Birmingham Corporation AEC Regent 486
• Make a donation to help secure our future

After several weeks of lockdown, transport enthusiasts and families looking forward to a fun day out are patiently waiting to get back to enjoying socialising once more. Transport Museum Wythall can ease the pain by offering you the opportunity to tour the museum and be the first to take a ride on Birmingham Corporation 1931 AEC Regent – all virtually!

By clicking on www.wythall.org.uk/vt you can also help raise much needed funds to ensure that the museum can keep its head above water until lockdown is eased and it can reopen.

Our income comes from special themed open day events and our regular opening schedule, with additional donations and legacies enabling us to restore the iconic vehicles in our collection. But like a vast number of visitor attractions across the UK, Covid-19 is hitting us hard. With no visitors and therefore no income from our special events days, our regular weekend and Wednesday opening and our bus rides into the Warwickshire and Worcestershire countryside, our future is in jeopardy as there are still many bills to pay. We have insurance, maintenance and security costs, vehicles to be tested in readiness for any easing in lockdown rules and much more.

First make a pot of tea, then click www.wythall.org.uk/vt to reach a video introduction to the world of buses; then stroll through a virtual tour of the museum where you will see our wide ranging collection and finally, turn up your sound and be one of the first to take a ride on the magnificently restored 1931 AEC Regent 486 on its only test run before premature withdrawal for expensive mechanical ‘re-engineering’ after its abortive contracted restoration. Fortunately, 486 is well on the way to returning to the road – hopefully in the autumn.

At the end of your journey, please make a donation and, if you are a taxpayer, we can also benefit from Gift Aid, so the form to do that follows the donation page. Listening to the evocative whine of 486’s AEC gearbox is worth a tenner alone!

The average visitor or family group spends between £10 and £50 per visit, including bus rides, a cup of tea and a cake! So while you patiently wait for lockdown to end please consider donating the cost of your visit, ensuring that we can still be here to provide the real thing for you as soon as the Government allows.

As another famous brand says – every little helps – so please enjoy the ride and of course, come and see us as soon as we reopen.