This advert in the Railway Times in 1837 is the turning point for long-distance transportation in the country. The Red Rover stagecoach route from London to Manchester was being re-established, but the sands of time weren’t in the favour of the service. The Red Rover service had been quite decadent, the drivers were well-paid and wore smart red hats and they were fined if their service was delayed (making them slightly less well-paid).
This stagecoach website mentions:
“LONDON – MANCHESTER. ‘THE RED ROVER’
London (Bull & Mouth, St Martins-le-Grand), Barnet, St Albans, Dunstable, Fenny Stratford, Stony Stratford, Towcester, Daventry, Coventry, Birmingham, Lichfield, Rugeley, Stafford, Stone, Newcastle-under- Lyme, Congleton, Wilmslow, Manchester
– Distance 187 miles. Journey time 20 hours
– Depart London at 8.30amManchester at 8.00am
– 4 seats inside, 8 outside
– Operator E Sherman & Co Numbers 3448, 3493″
On 17 September 1838, the rail service between London and Birmingham opened and the service between Manchester and Birmingham had already opened in 1837. The stagecoach services didn’t last much after this, most of the London services had ceased by the early 1840s.