Aldridge (pop. 40,000) on the freight line between Walsall and Water Orton sees plenty of freight yet no passenger services, and buses though plentiful are slow compared to trains covering say Aldridge to Sutton Coldfield and Aldridge to Walsall to Birmingham routes. Reinstating passenger services on a Birmingham-Sutton-Aldridge-Walsall-Wolverhampton route would provide useful connectivity and be much faster than bus on the very congested road network.
One of several parts of the West Mids and South Staffs which are conveniently ignored on railway maps.
Cannock is another with no direct link to the County town of Staffordshire ten miles away. Ironically, before the chase line was electrified there were through DMU services from Birmingham to Stafford via Walsall and Rugeley, but these were cut back to Rugeley Trent Valley, possibly due to the 75mph paths on the WCML.
After a small fortune was spent electrifying and resignalling the Chase I was expecting loads more connectivity, including reinstating a through service between Cannock, Stafford and further north. Sadly nowt, and when it comes to evenings and Sundays forget it. Arriva's buses stay locked up on Sunday.
Rail Passengers have to endure a bus shelter waiting room at Rugeley Trent Valley and miss the northbound connection by 5 minutes. Example 2H25 arrives Rugeley TV 1136, just after 2U29 departed 3 minutes earlier. Next train 57 mins later at 1233. The southbound connection is very slightly less irksome - only 50 minutes wait, allowing plenty of time to perambulate from the upside platform over the bridge and down to the downside branch platform for the Birmingham train.