Rare 1988 minibus being restored in Black Country
A rare bus which served passengers in the Black Country during the 1990s is undergoing a restoration project.
The Metro Cammell Weymann [MCW] Rider, built in Birmingham in 1988, is believed to be the last model of its kind in existence.
Volunteers at Aldridge Transport Museum, in Walsall, are currently restoring the bus to its former glory. This includes body work and a new paint job.
Martin Fisher, chairman of the museum's trustees, said the bus was the last of 85 models to be built and the only surviving vehicle.
He said: "They were the first purpose-designed minibus as opposed to a bus body on a deliver van chassis. They were quite advanced."
The museum acquired the bus in about 1998 from West Midlands Travel Limited which later became National Express, said Mr Fisher.
He continued: "This particular vehicle ran in various parts of the West Midlands. During the middle part of its operating life, it operated for a Black Country company called Metrowest in Dudley and Brierley Hill."
Although described as an advanced design, the bus was prone to rusting quite badly, said Mr Fisher.
He says the vehicle has been around for a long time at the museum. The reason for a delaying its restoration was "a lack of funding and not enough people skilled to carry out the operation".
However that has since changed.
Mr Fisher says it is hard to put a time estimate on its completion date but the bus should be restored by spring.
"If the weather holds, we are hoping it will be resprayed next week," said Mr Fisher.
The MCW is the oldest vehicle in the museum's collection of more than 20 vehicles.
The collection is made up buses and light goods vehicles. Other models includes a tram from 1905 and Ford Transit van from 1965.
The museum relies on volunteers to carry out its work and entry fees from the public to keep going.
For more information, visit www.amrtm.org.
