Coventry Transport Museum (formerly known as the Museum of British Road Transport) is a motor museum located in Coventry city centre. It houses a collection of British-made road transport. It is located in Coventry because the city was previously the centre of the British car industry. There are more than 240 cars and commercial vehicles, 100 motorcycles and 200 bicycles. Notable exhibits in the museum are Thrust2 and ThrustSSC, the British jet cars which broke the land speed record in 1983 and 1997, respectively, and some of the Royal cars - Queen Mary's and King George V's State limousines for example. Many "conventional" cars are in the collection, including an Austin Allegro, an Austin Metro previously owned by Lady Diana Spencer, a Ford Escort MK2, Hillman Imp, Triumph Acclaim, Talbot Sunbeam, Talbot Horizon, Peugeot 206, Peugeot 405 and a DeLorean DMC-12 car made famous by the Back to the Future films. A Humber staff car used by General Montgomery during the Second World War is also on display. There are a umber of special exhibitions and events such as 'Tractors: From Factory to Field' which will be on display through 2016. It includes Little Fergie, the Anartic tractor. This museum is far more than just a lot of vehicles on display.

 

The Permanent Exhibitions include: Cycle Pioneers 1868 to 1900; A New Industry 1900 to 1914; First World War 1914 to 1918; The Growth of the Motor Industry 1918 to 1939; Second World War 1939 to 1945; Rebuilding Coventry 1945 to 1950; Motor City UK 1950 to the present; Workdays and Holidays; Model World; Transport Technology; Future Technology; Jaguar Heritage; Coventry Champions. The last 150 years of Coventry’s history have been shaped, in part, by the rise and fall of its motor and cycle industries. In this time, around 475 bicycle and tricycle makers, 161 car manufacturers and 116 motorcycle manufacturers have operated in the city, touching the lives of millions of people.

 

The museum displays many Jaguars and other Coventry built cars such as the Triumph, Humber and Standard marques, an Alvis tank, Massey Ferguson tractors, and Coventry built buses, including the bus that the Coventry City football team paraded in after their victory in the 1987 FA Cup Final. Coventry motorcycle marques are also represented in the museum's collection including: Triumph, Francis-Barnett, Rudge-Whitworth and Coventry-Eagle and it is affiliated to the British Motorcycle Charitable Trust. Floor plans and full-colour museum guides are available from the shop. There is also a large wall map available in reception, near to the main entrance. There is wheelchair access suitable for unaccompanied wheelchair users to most parts of the Museum. Please ask for help in accessing Model World. Lift access is provided to both floors of the Museum, and they also have a small number of wheelchairs available free of charge for visitors to use whilst at the Museum. Assistance dogs are welcome.

 

The toilets, including accessible facilities, are on the ground floor to the left of the main entrance beside the café, and also on the first floor next to the Transport Technology exhibition. The nearest Changing Places facility is at Central Library, which is approximately ¼ mile away. The café is situated to the left of the main entrance and is fully wheelchair accessible. The shop can be found to the right of the main museum entrance. Lockers, wheelchair hire and buggy parking can be found on the right before Reception. Baby changing and breastfeeding facilities are available in the Parent and Baby room on the first floor next to the Transport Technology exhibition. Hot water for baby bottles is available from the café on request. Makaton symbols are at the entrance to each new exhibition to explain the theme for that space. The new exhibitions have a mixture of written material, pictures, audio, video and interactives. The videos and interactives have special directional speakers. The sound does not carry across the space, but can still be heard when you stand close to the speakers. There are subtitles for the main videos with commentary. The Workdays and Holidays exhibition is a dedicated multi-sensory space, with scents, sounds and tactile items available to use. The scents and sounds are contained and can be accessed by lifting a handle or telephone handset. All of the vehicle and object labels are in large print, with a special background tint to reduce glare. Visual aids, such as magnifying sheets, are available to borrow free of charge from reception.

 

Location : Millennium Place, Hales Street, Coventry, West Midlands CV1 1JD

Transport: Coventry (National Rail) then bus. Bus Routes : Most buses stop at Pool Meadow bus station or on Trinity Street, both are a 2 minute walk from the Museum.

Opening Times : Daily 10:00 to 17:00.

Tickets : Free

Land Speed Record Simulator: Adults £5.00;  Under 16 / Concessions £3.50

Tel: 024 7623 4270