Coventry Trams

Was this Coventry Corporation Tramways vehicle a motor tram or a bus?

Hi, The trams ran along the Binley Rd, never Walsgrave Rd. This picture was recorded before the Three Spires voiding line was constructed, it's approaching where the current over-bridge is nowadays, which now carries the bypass.

It's a bus - details

Shame they only lasted a few months, they look like a good idea!

It is an omnibus and is just about to turn left into Clay Lane. (image from google)

Please DO say some more

If a person goes to the trouble of setting up a website to tell the history of a subject, when us, as a visitor to it, we would expect to see some history, even if, it is only told briefly. 1892, has to be the most fascinating year in the whole saga of public transport in Coventry. However if you look there, not a sausage! February 1892, the major shareholder seized the whole property. In the march, an application was made to the high court for the appointment of a receiver. Mr A.J. Davis was appointed as such. The board of trade gave him a months license to run the trams. May, Mr W.J. Graff Baker, proprietor of Leeds Electrical Tramway, purchased the system from the receiver. With his knowledge and expertise of what he had done in Leeds, he was granted a short license to run the trams. He gained the confidence of Coventry Corporation. His plans were to convert the system to electric. However, before spending any more of his money, in the July he offered the Corporation the whole caboodle, lock, stock and barrel, for £12,000 and on a 21 year lease at an annual rent of £840. The Corporation had meetings about that, but, could not get any guaranties of what would happen after the 21 years had expired. So his offer was politely turned down. Mr W.J. Graff Baker was issued with a further license to run the trams, 1st August to 1st January 1893. That's brief, but it's there.

CPH, before that was the pair-horse trams, the stairs went up from the side of the driver, railings ran around the top open deck. During the first world war there was an acute shortage of petrol and a number of vehicles had to resort to a 'gas-bag', this ran along the whole length of the vehicle on top - this was about 4ft high in a kind of tray. 1913 saw the char-a-bancs appear.

An old "COVENTRY CORPORATION TRAMWAYS" 1d ticket!

An even older tram ticket here, which is a 2d one from the "COVENTRY ELECTRIC TRAMWAYS COMPANY"!

I see from the splendid pictures posted that the prewar tramway ran along the Cross Cheaping face of the 1937 Owen Owen building, for which my grandfather Gerald de Courcy Fraser was the architect. Can anyone provide me with a map of the Coventry tram routes in 1937, please. It is an amusing coincidence that Birmingham have recently reintroduced a tramline right into the city centre and one of the new stops is at Bull Street, right outside Lewis's also designed by my grandfather.

You might be able to see what you want from the 1936/7 map on old maps. Old maps, follow link and zoom out 3 times

It can still be saved!

As much as I like the old trams and travelled on Melbourne's trams I don't have a lot of faith in that one, Neil, but miracles have been known to happen.