assisting it. A second canal through the town, the Bentley Canal, opened in 1843 between Wednesfield Junction, near the modern New Cross Hospital, and Walsall. The canal was abandoned in the 1960s, and only a short section at Wednesfield Junction is extant. Wednesfield railway station on the Wolverhampton and Walsall Railway was opened in 1872, connecting the town with Wolverhampton High Level and Walsall. It was operated by the Midland Railway, and was located on Neachells Lane to the south of the town centre. It closed to passenger traffic in 1931, although it remained open for goods traffic until the 1980s. Much of the trackbed was reused for the A4124 Wednesfield Way, which bypasses the town centre and opened in 1999. The first railway within the township was the Grand Junction Railway, where Wednesfield Heath railway station (opened in 1837) was the primary station for Wolverhampton, and was located on Station Road, Heath Town. The station was replaced by Wolverhampton High Level in the city centre, and closed to passengers in 1873 whilst remaining open for goods traffic until 1965. The siting of this station at Heath Town has been cited as a reason for the separation of Wednesfield and Heath Town. Public transport in Wednesfield is coordinated by Transport for West Midlands. Most bus services within the town are operated by National Express West Midlands, with services from the town centre to destinations including Wolverhampton city centre, Bilston, Bloxwich, Walsall and Willenhall. The 59 bus route which runs from Wolverhampton city centre to Ashmore Park via New Cross Hospital and Wednesfield High Street is the most frequent in the city. The 71 bus route by Chaserider provides an hourly link to Essington, Great Wyrley and Cannock. Diamond West Midlands (Let's Go from 25th April 2022) 65 provides an hourly service between Wolverhampton and Fordhouses via New Cross Hospital and Bushbury Crematorium. National Express West Midlands service 9 (from 29 August 2021) operates between Walsall, Pelsall, Bloxwich and Wolverhampton on a regular basis. An extension of the West Midlands Metro through Wednesfield is planned, on the "5Ws" route from Wolverhampton to Wednesbury via Willenhall and Walsall. Notable people Tom Aspaul – Singer, songwriter and producer Ruth Badger – Businesswoman and runner-up on the second series of The Apprentice Martin Cooper – England rugby union player John Cosnett – Darts player Wayne Jones – Darts player Jonathan Pedley − Master of