Road Transport

Old maps dating back as far as the late seventeen hundreds show Newbold as a sparsely populated settlement centred around a well and two farms, Elm Farm and Newbold Farm. At this time, roads would have been dirt tracks travelled by foot and horse-drawn vehicles. A map from 1806 shows a triangle shape in the centre of the village. In those days, Ashby Road was known as Lount Road and School Lane was Newbold Hurst Road and Cross Lane.

A map from 1832 shows that there were no buildings on Newbold Hurst Road. A track leading to Railway Cottages is shown on the map just above the number 38.

As Newbold became more industrialised, roads were improved and tarmaced. In 1936, a haulage company was established by Richard Hodges and operated as R.Hodges Ltd. before it became Newbold Haulage Company Ltd in 1941 (Kelly’s Directory). The company’s activities were listed as coal merchants and haulage contractors and was situated at the end of Pipe Yard Lane.

Interesting Fact

In 1935, Leicestershire County Council purchased land from Richard Hodges for £5 and 17 shillings to widen and improve the road between Lount and Newbold. Presumably this was necessary as more products and materials needed to be transported to and from the New Lount Colliery, the Pipeyard and the Brickworks. These road improvements would have also benefited Richard Hodges’ haulage company!

Bus transport was vital for people coming to and from Newbold for work. Villagers recount that the first bus company to serve Newbold was Higgs and Waller. Trent Buses took over and provided a service to Worthington, Melbourne and Ashby.

After nationalisation of the mines in 1947, there was a private coach to transport Newbold residents who worked at the Coal Board headquarters at Coleorton Hall. Ralph Walker a former village resident, recalled that the fare for the Trent bus from Newbold Well to Worthington in the 1920s was one penny, the same price as four gobstoppers bought at the village shop! How many children walked to Worthington having spent their penny on sweets?

Richard Hodges (1890-1959) was the younger brother of Frank Hodges who also became a Director of the Newbold Haulage Company Ltd. Other directors were Harry Hodges (1885-1941), Frank and Richard’s brother; Edward Martin and Abe P. Carter (Frank Hodges’ brother in law).