2012 - Day Out 08: Stourbridge Interchange

Date: Saturday 21 April 2012

It was this weekend that we would see the first buses use the new Stourbridge Interchange in public service. After eighteen months it was a welcome change at not walking down Birmingham Street to catch a bus.

About a week ago, Phil Tonks contacted me to see if I would go on The Bridge Brunch to talk about the new Stourbridge Interchange, it was an offer that I could not turn down. I asked Mr UKBuses if he would come down with me as a friendly face may calm my nerves. After devouring a Wetherspoons Breakfast at "The Chequers Inn", I walk down the High Street to meet up with Mr UKBuses by the town clock, it was a welcome change as I could walk down the middle of the High Street as it was closed off in readiness for a parade as part of Stourbridge's St Georges Day celebrations. Just before half-past-ten, Mr UKBuses turns up and we see part of the parade before we have to walk back up the High Street to get to the studio, but Mr UKBuses has another idea, he spots the Stourbridge Shuttle bus coming up Lower High Street and we jump on and get off at the temporary stands at Parkfield Road. We now walk down towards the new Interchange but we turn off when we are near St John's Church. The nerves are starting to kick in now, so before entering the studio, which is inside the church, I have a "fresh air" break. We enter the studio and Al Jackson, the presenter of today's Bridge Brunch quickly pops out of the studio to say hello, returning to interview his current guests in the studio. It is now eleven o'clock and whilst the news is being played, it is our turn to go into the studio ready for being interviewed. Mr UKBuses comes into the studio also, but he has to be quiet, now that will be a first. Al reads the weather and introduces me and also the other guest, CENTRO's Chris Perry who is being interviewed over the phone. Chris is being questioned first and it is all silent in the studio as we can't hear what he is saying, this is where I get nervous as I don't want to appear stupid if I repeat anything that Chris has just said. Al asks me questions about the Interchange and somehow I manage to answer all that he asked during the interview, but I cannot remember what I said as I was just a bag of nerves, luckily Al passed me headphones when he realised and then I could hear what Chris was saying. After about ten minutes, the interview is over and Al thanks us for coming along and we make way for the next guest to get in the hot seat. We leave the studio and the first thing that I have to do is have another "fresh air break". Whilst it was nerve racking it was also a good experience, after the show I did think to myself, "I could have answered that question better" or "I forgot to say this". A quick visit was needed to the Lloyd's Bar, "The Edward Rutland", and as we leave I can feel my nerves returning to normal. After our visit we make our way back home.

Date: Sunday 22 April 2012

It is the day of the opening of the new Stourbridge Interchange, and to mark the event, Mr UKBuses and myself decide to have a very early start and watch the first bus to enter the new Stourbridge Interchange. I meet up with Mr UKBuses and we have a walk into Stourbridge. We arrive by the subway in Foster Street and after putting on our National Express West Midlands Hi-Vis's on we make the walk underground. We can turn right and we are walking up the new subway that takes you direct into the main Stourbridge Interchange building. We make the way up the stairs and we arrive at the top and after waiting 18 months we are now back on CENTRO ground. I have a look around the buildings taking pictures for the final set in my gallery on the website which covers the redevelopment from start to finish. Steve Hutchinson, the Interchange manager pops by and says hello and we also bump into Phil Tonks, bus user, promoter and also the driver of The Stourbridge Dodger, see picture right. We have a walk around the outside looking at the Interchange from a different view from what I'm used to seeing. It is nearly time and we make our way around to the entrance to the Interchange to see the first bus pull in. As we are waiting there, people come up to me asking where to catch their bus from or if the Interchange is now open, they don't ask Mr UKBuses who actually works for a bus company. The first number 9 turns into Foster Street and within a few seconds, we see it pull in. The first bus is being driven by Driver Pearson, see picture at the beginning of the blog post. As it makes it's way around to Stand H, we make our way onto the path opposite so pictures can be taken. After a few minutes the first bus service pulls out of the Interchange, and there were a few people who record the event, including Chris Perry, the other guest who was on the phone during my radio experience yesterday. Steve runs over to me with an interesting fact, the first passenger to board the first bus is a lady named Anna Loss, a trainee midwife at Birmingham University.

After the start of a new era, we have a further walk around the station, I pop into the Spar shop that is open in the main Interchange building, but sadly I am not the first customer, someone else beat me to that and I got no name to inform you as part of the Interchange facts. I also have a look at the new information desk, but there is this strange person staring, see picture left, so I walk away. After watching a couple more number 9's, we wait by the Stourbridge Town entrance and look at the display screens. Before our eyes, it looks like someone has got a can of black spray paint and sprayed it across the top of the screen. Luckily, the problem (which I think was condensation) fixed itself later on in the day. Since we had an early start, our stomachs were beginning to rumble, so a visit to J D Wetherspoons was in order and Phil Tonks, Mr UKBuses and myself walk to The Chequers Inn and have a Wetherspoons Breakfast (to celebrate the opening of course!), Phil and Mr UKBuses decide to have the large option and I have the standard size. It doesn't take long for Phil to down his, he has finished and I still have some of my standard size breakfast left. We have a few minutes after finishing to let the grub go down and we decide to have another walk around to see more services starting to use the new Interchange. We see the first service 246 use the new Interchange and also we see a new operator to the area, Arriva, who have won the tender to operate CENTRO supported journeys on services 142 and 257. Service 142 was the first one to run, so we see it pull out of the new Interchange and as soon as the bus leaves, the driver takes a wrong turn and heads up Foster Street to get onto the Ring Road, even though it is no entry, the driver has to reverse into the entrance of the Mercedes garage opposite. This was the first driver to go the wrong route from the new Interchange.

Next up was service 257 and Phil, Mr UKBuses and myself decide that this will be the first bus that we will catch from the new Interchange, so we walk to stand G to catch it, passing David and Emma Balme on the way, saying a quick hello and goodbye as we pass. We board the first service 257 from the Interchange and after taking our seats, we do a couple of poses for David who is taking photo's opposite and then the bus pulls off and does the same as the last service 142, turning left into Foster Street, despite us shouting "No!". Luckily, the bus hasn't gone too far down Foster Street, so the driver reverses into the new entrance of the Interchange, which means that we are on the first bus to go into the new Interchange backwards. Despite the wrong turning, the driver makes no more mistakes even in the tricky part of the route around Gornal Wood. We arrive in Dudley and as soon as we arrive, we leave on the X96, the first one that will arrive in the new Interchange from Dudley. Mr UKBuses has some snooker to watch, so he catches the first 276C from the Interchange, driven by Geoff, see picture right.

Phil pops back home, and I hang around the new Interchange before Phil returns so that Interchange manager Steve can make his radio appearance on The Bridge Radio. I pop round with them, which means I can get the recording of my Bridge Brunch appearance from yesterday. After Steve's appearance, we walk back round to the Interchange and Steve has the same thought as me, that he could have said other things, but didn't think about them at the time. I have one last look around the new Interchange before Geoff arrive to drive me back home on Service 276A after an eventful day and the start of a new era for Stourbridge public transport.

I am totally loving the new Interchange it is the first part of Stourbridge's regeneration with Tesco redeveloping the old Bell Street Multi Storey Car Park and Crown Centre bringing more fresh changes to the town. A big thank you also goes to Steve at the interchange for all the help he has given us this weekend and also Phil Tonks and Al Jackson for giving me the opportunity to appear on radio.