Every route 99. 15 of 25.

Sunday 19th July 2026

After last time’s review of West Midlands’ Diamond Bus operated route numbered 99, it’s a short hop over the conurbation’s western border into neighbouring Telford & Wrekin land to explore Telford’s circular bus route bearing the same number 99 with an ‘A’ suffix denoting anti-clockwise and ‘C’ for clockwise.

It’s the second of two circular routes numbered 99 in this series (the first was in Pontypridd) and it’s the only route of the 25 numbered 99 in Britain operated by Arriva.

You might be able to make out the route taken on the above extract from Arriva’s network map for Telford. The 99A/C is the route in the north west quadrant of the town in a light pink colour. Alternatively, here’s the route mapped out on an Ordnance Survey map of the area tracked as I travelled the route from which you can see it even beats last time’s route 99 for the number of left and right turns around the route. I lost count, there were so many.

The timetable provides an hourly frequency in both directions around the circuit linking Telford’s bus station clockwise with many of the town’s residential areas including Malinslee, Lawley, Arleston and Wellington before continuing via Admaston, Bratton, Shawbirch and the Princess Royal Hospital followed by Hadley, Oakengates and Ketley and finally back into Telford town centre.

A full circular round trip takes 83 minutes meaning three buses are deployed to run the schedule with an operational day from 05:17 to 19.40 on Mondays to Saturdays with no later evening or Sunday service. Indeed, the last bus leaves Telford bus station at 17:47 (99A) and 18:17 (99C). The first journey in the morning and an afternoon journey are extended to Priorslee on schooldays.

I enjoyed my ride around the circuit earlier this week on Monday’s sunny and hot morning, catching the 12:17 route 99C from Telford bus station with five other passengers.

The bus, as did the two others out that day on the service, carried a red Travel Telford livery which partly blocks the view from the back of the bus…

… however it does stand out as a contrast with Arriva’s standard livery which otherwise dominates the town’s bus scene. It’s also noteworthy to see Telford & Wrekin promotes itself as a “Co-operative Council”.

There was also publicity both externally and inside the bus promoting Telford & Wrekin’s £2 fare cap which continues to apply.

Heading out of the bus station spot on time, one of our five passengers alighted with her shopping at the first stop in Malinslee after just four minutes into the journey. This is the first of many residential areas visited over the next hour or so but never drifting more than five miles, as a crow would fly, from Telford bus station.

A passenger joined as we left Malinsee with another coming on board as we passed through Heath Hill towards Lawley where a third joined us. As we continued into Wellington the passenger who joined in Malinsee alighted in Arleston followed by the one who’d boarded in Lawley confirming this circular route arrangement is helpful for such inter-area journeys.

Twenty minutes after leaving Telford bus station we pulled into Wellington bus station where four of the five passengers on board alighted, leaving just one still on board from Telford but a new four joined making for a bus of five on board again. Although that didn’t last long, as two more came on board at the next stop by a large Aldi in Wellington.

The fifth and final passenger from Telford finally alighted in Dothill leaving just the six on board from Wellington. These alighted in Admaston and Shawbirch with the latter regarded as the mid point on the circuit being about 45 minutes from Telford and giving residents of this rather pleasant area (with its mix of houses, green spaces and lakes especially in Dothill)…

… two buses an hour, fairly well spaced (one clockwise and one anti-clockwise), albeit with a rather long journey time into the town centre.

We picked up a new passenger in Shawbirch who travelled all the way into Telford town centre and then another joined at the Princess Royal Hospital. This is served by a fairly lengthy dogleg/double run (as shown in the above enlarged section of the map – bottom right corner) but gives a useful facility for people needing the hospital from many residential areas of the town.

It was then on to Hadley where four more passengers joined at three bus stops followed by two more in Trench Lock and another two in a place called Wombridge making for 10 on board – our busiest yet.

Next up was Oakengates bus station at 13:19, an hour after leaving Telford with roughly 20 minutes left – almost the exact equivalent of Wellington bus station on the western side of the circuit. Four passengers alighted here with two more leaving in the next area, Ketley.

I thought we were almost at the end of the route but no, there was one final circuitous loop to do (see above map) to serve a HUGE retail park and car park (see below Google aerial map), where two passengers joined and after which all six on board went to the bus station where we arrived on time at 13:40.

There was a driver changeover before the bus left on its next journey at 13:47 – this time as a 99A and I saw eight passengers board giving a good indication of off-peak numbers using this route and finding its various links useful.

Obviously no passengers would do what I did and travel all around the circuit, and the route is really made up of four or five segments centred on Wellington, the Hospital, Oakengates and the retail park with Telford’s town centre acting as the central pivot.

However for a circular route it did seem to do a lot of twisting and turning along the way as I’ve shown on the map extracts and I do wonder whether some of these are slightly off putting when it comes to attracting passengers. For £2 though, it’s a great Sightseeing Tour of Telford if you want to see the delights of the north western quadrant of the town – and have a spare 83 minutes on your hands.

Roger French

Did you catch the previous 14 blogs in this series? 1 Eastbourne-Hastings, 2 Petworth-Chichester, 3 Woolwich-Bexleyheath, 4 Tilbury Town-Tilbury Ferry Terminal, 5 Chippenham-Swindon, 6 Ubley-Chew Valley, 7 Exmouth-Brixington-Exmouth, 8 Taunton-Chard, 9 Pontypridd town circular, 10 Cheltenham-Gloucester, 11 Leigh-on-Sea-Shoeburyness East Beach, 12 Malton-Chelmsford, 13 Lowestoft-Southwold-Halesworth, 14 Solihull-Kingshurst.

Summer blogging timetable: 06:00 TThSSu