Restoring the Electric Age: Reviving the Trolleybus Experience at Black Country Living Museum
9th Apr 2026
Black Country Living Museum secures £272,000 to bring historic electric transport back to life
Black Country Living Museum has secured £272,000 from the DCMS/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund to restore its historic trolleybuses and bring electric transport back to life in Dudley.
The project will see three locally built trolleybuses return to operation, running through the Museum’s 1940s–60s High Street, creating a unique visitor experience and celebrating the region’s role in early electric transport.
A unique trolleybus experience in the UK
Once complete, Black Country Living Museum will be the only place in the UK where visitors can ride historic trolleybuses through a recreated mid-20th-century streetscape.
Trolleybuses were once a familiar sight across the Black Country, and this project will reconnect them with the communities and stories they helped shape.
Supporting sustainable transport and accessibility
The restoration will:
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Improve accessibility across the Museum’s 29-acre site
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Reduce reliance on diesel vehicles
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Support more sustainable visitor travel
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Enhance the overall visitor experience
The timing is particularly significant, with Dudley set to welcome the West Midlands Metro later this year - reconnecting the town to the wider transport network.
Together, these developments highlight both the history and future of electric transport in the region.
Why this project matters
The trolleybus network has been out of operation for over three years due to infrastructure issues. This funding ensures its long-term future and protects an important part of the Museum’s transport collection.
It also supports the Museum’s mission to bring the Black Country’s industrial and social history to life through immersive, working experiences.
How you can support the project
While this funding secures the core of the project, we are now inviting supporters to help us go further.
Additional funding will support interpretation, accessibility improvements and enhancements to the visitor experience, ensuring the trolleybus network can be enjoyed by generations to come.
About The DCMS/Wolfson Museum and Galleries Improvement Fund
The DCMS/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund provides capital funding for museums and galleries across England to improve displays, protect collections and make exhibitions more accessible to visitors. For 2025-27, DCMS and the Wolfson Foundation have each contributed £2 million to the Fund, which has benefitted more than 440 projects in its more than 20-year history.
Plan your visit
With the arrival of the West Midlands Metro, there will soon be new ways to travel to Dudley and visit Black Country Living Museum.
Whether arriving by tram or exploring on foot, visitors will be able to step into a living, working history and experience electric transport past and present in one place.