Pick ups are –
07:10 Quinton.
The bus stop outside Chiquito’s Mexican Restaurant close to the junction of A456 Hagley Road and the A4123 Birmingham to Wolverhampton Road. For a Google map see here or for a street view here
07:30 Birmingham City Centre
The bus stop outside Louisa Ryland House, 44 Newhall Street, Birmingham B3 3PL For a Google map see here or a street view here
Arrival at Kew is about 10:15, we get back to Birmingham 7:30 – 8:00 in the evening. These times subject to outside influences.
At Quinton, there is some car parking space in the redundant part of the Wolverhampton Road (A4123), in front of McDonalds, it is not private land but a public highway. It is an area well used by weekday commuters into Birmingham, plenty of space at our start time on a Saturday morning, a bit busier in the evening. There is also some on street space in nearby Redhall Road by the vacant plot (was caravan sales then Hot Tub sales) on the other side of the Hagley Road (A456). Either way at some stage, am or pm. you have to walk across the main road, as coming home the coach drops off at the bus stop on the out of town side of Hagley Road. You can also find space sometimes in Balden Road, only a few houses there, Harborne Road is very tight.
We take a Comfort break at Oxford services in both directions but we keep it short. We don’t want to be hanging around too long as the object of the outing is to get to do some research. And at the end of a long day we are all keen to get back home. Obviously it is all flexible.
Any one who wants to visit any where else in Kew, say the Gardens, using the outing as an opportunity for coach seat only, that’s ok. The gardens are but a short walk from the Archives drop off point. Other sites of interest nearby are the Kew Steam Museum, the Mechanical Musical Instrument Museum, galleries and antique shops, strolls along the Thames and pub lunches. The steam museum has a Boulton & Watt 96″ stroke engine, built in 1820 by Brummies.