Old Bus Photos

Solent Blue Line – Leyland Titan PD2 – 86 GFJ – 01

Solent Blue Line - Leyland Titan PD2 - 86 GFJ - 01         Copyright Pete Davies

Solent Blue Line
1963
Leyland Titan PD2A/30
Massey H31/26R

This PD2A/30 was new to Exeter City Transport in 1963, with Massey H57R bodywork. In this first view she was with Solent Blue Line, a subsidiary of Southern Vectis, established by two disgruntled managers of Southampton Citybus in 1987. Most of the time, 01 was the training vehicle, but she did operate peak journeys on some routes, notably between Southampton City Centre and the Thornhill Estate. A colleague who had the misfortune to travel on her on these occasions described her as a wreck. The current version of that route uses Mercedes Citaros! This view was taken at the Netley rally on 23 July 1989.

City of Exeter- Leyland Titan PD2 - 86 GFJ - 86
Copyright Pete Davies

In this second view, also at Netley, but on 12 July 1992, she has been restored to her previous Exeter condition. What a difference a coat of paint and a bit of care can make!

Photograph and Copy contributed by Pete Davies

A full list of Titan codes can be seen here.


01/02/13 – 06:19

In case anyone was wondering, the bus alongside in the second view is the Maidstone & District Atlantean, 558LKP.

Pete Davies


01/02/13 – 06:19

In the "as restored" photograph she seems to have an enclosed platform (with doors?), whilst in the earlier photograph she has an open platform . . .

Philip Rushworth


01/02/13 – 07:37

Looking at other photos on the web this seems to be a removable doorway to allow the owner to secure the vehicle on trips. There are plenty of pictures of it as restored without doors.

David Beilby


01/02/13 – 08:40

Our moderator and I were wondering how soon readers would notice the presence or absence of a platform door!
1hr 14mins is pretty good going David.

Pete Davies


 

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Morecambe & Heysham – Leyland Titan PD2/37 – 33 MTD – 87

Morecambe & Heysham Leyland Titan PD2
Photo by ‘unknown’ if you took this photo please go to the copyright page.

Morecambe & Heysham Corporation
1960
Leyland Titan PD2/37
Massey H37/27F

Here is a difference in livery for Morecambe & Heysham Corporation the old as depicted on fleet number 63 in the background and the new on the Leyland Titan PD2 fleet number 87 in the foreground even in black & white the new livery looks more attractive. The colours by the way were a darkish green and cream. Morecambe & Heysham had a tendency to get there money’s worth out of there buses and kept them a little bit past what other operators would regard as there sell by date, luckily for us bus enthusiasts (more photos to follow).
The PD2/37 coding breaks down as follows:- exposed radiator, synchromesh gearbox, air brakes, 27 foot long by 8 foot wide and built 1955 onwards.
I do like the sliding doors but they never really caught on, why not? If you know, let me know, please leave a comment.

A full list of Titan codes can be seen here.


The only sliding doors I ever experienced (on North Western Dennis Lolines and Lancashire United Guy Arab Vs) were air operated. This meant that they were moved by an accelerating force rather than at a steady speed as they would be by an electric motor. Being quite heavy they were slow to get moving, and then moved faster and faster, eventually shutting with a massive thump. I would not like to have been in their way.

Peter Williamson


You will be pleased to know that one of the Weymann-bodied batch 73 (MTE 635) survives at Keighley Bus Museum, where its owner Ken Wade is valiantly battling to replace about four tons of rotten steel and wood! Steel + wood + salt = bad news!
As far as sliding doors go, I concur with Peter: they were always sluggish in operation, and from the Green line "Q" double-decker to the SHMD short Fleetlines they were always troublesome.
One reason must be sheer physics: one big door has to be made quite rigid and is therefore very heavy, so it needs a lot of power to get it moving (unless it’s manually operated when it’s murder for the conductor!) Secondly, the single door leaf has to travel further to close the opening -about four feet as opposed to the one-foot movement required of a jack-knife door leaf, so it just takes longer to shut.
On a one-man bus they were worse still, because there was often an interlock to prevent the gears engaging until the door had closed, so they increased dwell times at stops and hindered time-keeping too. For the record, the twin-sliders on SHMD centre-entrance buses are electric, and they’re fairly quick, but still slower than the jacknife type.

David Jones


Sliding doors were common in this area; I’m 99% certain that Ribble’s full-fronted PD3s had them and also Lancaster City Transport’s PD2s, (201-206).

Dave Tower


When Southend Corporation purchased some ex Ribble deckers with sliding doors they were nicknamed Bacon Slicers. I recall that they tended to be slow to close and then speeded up and closed with a bang. I recall that Yorkshire Traction had a batch of PD3s with sliding entrance doors.

Philip Carlton


It must’ve been a regional thing because as a kid in the 1960s sliding doors were quite common where I lived.

See these two links which show the kind of bus which I regularly saw

//www.flickr.com/

//www.flickr.com/

KC


Arriva Yorkshire’s newish reputedly hi-spec Volvo/Optare Double Deckers rattle constantly: although you could sometimes put it down to driving style, the noise seems to come from the folding front doors. So is it back to sliders?

Joe


All Yorkshire Traction’s Northern Counties and Roe bodied PD3’s had sliding doors and the description of that accelerating door followed by a solid thump was just as bad east of the Pennines as it was in Lancashire, very hard to set up perfectly.
The only exception on PD3’s they had were the two ex County Motors vehicles, these had traditional (as opposed to Park Royal style) bodies with jack knife doors.
The advantage of the sliding door though was that it maximised the width of the door aperture meaning that you could easily achieve a double flow of leaving or entering passengers to both saloons simultaneously whereas the jack knife type tend to narrow the doorway a bit.

Andrew


Morecambe and Heysham Corporation was the catalyst which got me hooked on buses when I was about 3 years old. in the 1945/8 period.
I recognised the similarity of Weymann body to those of my home town Bradford fleet, and the dis-similarity of the Park Royals. This was in the pre Mk III days, and one had a real job to recognise fleet numbers as they were all over the place on the pre-war stock, filling voids for withdrawn buses.
Anybody got a fleet list of the pre-war Regents and the single Regal?
What a super green livery too…I cannot believe I am talking about 60 odd years ago!

John Whitaker


John, I have a M & H fleet list of every bus the undertaking owned. If you are still interested contact me through the website.

Dave Towers


12/01/12 – 06:35

Here I am again on about Southdown but they did have a batch of PD2/12’s No’s 799-812 with East Lancs bodies plus one earlier Guy Arab with Park Royal body No 547 (thankfully now preserved) fitted with sliding doors on rear entrance bodies. These were different in as much as they were in two parts which with some, to me unknown, mechanical trickery slotted in between the rear wheel arch and the normal width platform. They were still very slow in operation and being electrically driven struggled manfully when facing up a steep hill, the driver was well advised to press the open button a little in advance if possible. I have only recently discovered your wonderful site and I am have fun exploring it, so I hope you will excuse my ramblings.

Diesel Dave


12/01/12 – 10:43

Ramble on as much as you like, along with the rest of us!
I don’t know where they were based, but seem to recall seeing one or two on route 31 around Portsmouth. However, Southdown had similar bus bodies made by Park Royal, Beadle and Northern Counties et al, and you had to look closely to tell the difference. Can’t recall whether they all had doors, though. I was distracted with girlfriends around this period!

Chris Hebbron


13/01/12 – 07:35

Welcome to the club, Dave, and, as Chris says, ramble on – from another David with diesel in his blood.

David Oldfield


14/01/12 – 07:34

From my childhood holiday memories, Blackpool had some centre entrance Burlingham bodied Leylands that I think were unique to them, they were fitted with two opposed sliding doors that closed like a guillotine. I never got to ride on them very much, but I will always remember one conductor calling out ‘mind the doors they’ve just been sharpened’. I know one of these vehicles is awaiting restoration with LTT preservation trust, but I don’t know if any more of them survive

Ronnie Hoye


14/01/12 – 07:36

Well Chris and Dave – not sure which was the greater distraction, but the Southdown PD2’s were great machines, even if I only sampled them as a teenage passenger! There were 112 of them (on PD2/12 chassis), the first 54 with Leyland bodies. The initial 24 were without doors on delivery in 1951, but soon had them fitted, and all the rest were delivered with doors. Then came 10 with Northern Counties bodies, and the rest were bodied by Beadle, Park Royal and East Lancs. As Dave says, some had sliding doors, although most had 4-piece folders. Until the PD3 Queen Marys came along from 1958 onwards, these were Southdown’s front line machines not only on the 31 to Brighton, but the London Road services out of Portsmouth to Waterlooville and Petersfield too. Before the Queen Mary’s took over everything in sight (as it seemed by 1965 onwards), the PD2/12s were nicely intermingled with earlier PD2s (80 of these also Leyland bodied)and PD1s (a mixture of Leyland and Park Royal bodies), and the surviving rebodied pre-war TD4s and TD5s. I loved the sound of a pre-war Leyland TD engine, and was sad to see the last Southdown one go in 1962. But the sound lived on in Portsmouth Corporation’s four open-top TD4s, and in their "Leylandised Crossleys" (as the local drivers called them). These survived until 1967, and the open-toppers until 1971/72, and all 4 still survive in preservation.

Michael Hampton


14/01/12 – 12:21

Barton’s Northern Counties bodied Regent V’s, plus there own rebuilt Leyland deckers all had sliding doors including the UK’s lowest height Dennis Loline which was at the 1960 commercial motor show.

Roger Broughton


14/01/12 – 14:00

Roger is right – all of those rebuilds had single piece sliding doors. The earlier PD1s with Duple front entrance bodies had twin doors, and from memory they were usually fairly gentle in operation. There were conductor or passenger operated "open/close" buttons above the doors (i.e. they were not under the control of the driver.) In warm weather they were often left open – none of this Health and Safety nonsense, and after all the other 70% of deckers had open rear platforms anyway!

Stephen Ford


13/02/13 – 04:30

When in the 1940s I used to stay with my gran who lived in Ingleborough Road we would take the bus to Morecambe. The bus used to detour off the main road and go through Torrisholme where I was always fascinated by a a large Italianate coloured statue in a garden which could be seen from upstairs on the bus. I wondered if it is still there or if anyone else remembers it.

Garth


26/03/13 – 06:41

My mum, Hilda Wilson, used to be a bus conductress on the Morecambe & Heysham buses and she and the other women (except one) could only work on them in the spring and summer. The lady who was allowed had worked on them before the war. There must have been some rule that prevented them. My mum used to have to finish before winter and start again the year after when the weather got warmer.

Lynne


26/03/13 – 11:23

More often than not, Lynne, it was the unions who objected to conductresses continuing after the war. I suppose your mum worked during the Summer Season, when services were augmented for the holidaymakers.

Chris Hebbron


27/03/13 – 06:49

I think that – for all it’s weaknesses (slow to operate, yet forceful when opening/closing [I understand that the repeated slamming when closing caused structural problems in the front near-side bulkhead]) and strength (unrestricted entrance/exit area) – the sliding door just came too late: the advent of the rear-engined/front-entrance double-decker killed it off (sliding door ahead of the front axle?) . . . apart from those strange dual-door Fleetlines supplied to Walsall and SHMD.

Philip Rushworth


27/03/13 – 16:51

I am replying to Lynne’s comments about conductresses on Morecambe’s buses. I was a seasonal conductor (student) in the early 60’s working about 3 months in each of four successive summers (remember those?!) and recall three full-time conductresses : Mrs Fisher, Mrs Camm and Ms Higgins. I have vague memories of your mother also Lynne (Mrs Wilson). Another conductress, Mrs Bell worked every year from Spring through Summer. Her husband was a full time driver and they were often rostered together. Unlike the many students who wore lightweight summer uniforms Mrs Bell was attired in full regular uniform (navy blue). They were years fondly remembered and all of my colleagues were tremendous characters – even the inspectors!

Keith Nicholson


28/03/13 – 06:39

Keith, you may find this a funny question, but have you lived in Market Deeping?

David Call


28/03/13 – 17:58

Well David – how right you are! Yes I did live in Market Deeping and I needed to get the abacus out to calculate when! I was there for about 6 years and left in 1988 or thereabouts. I now live in Peterborough and in my retirement I make ‘guest appearances’ for Stagecoach locally driving on city routes. What’s our connection?

Keith Nicholson


29/03/13 – 06:44

I used to know a lad in Heysham (I lived in Morecambe at the time) who, in the 1970s (and possibly longer, of course), kept in touch with you. It’s a small world, bus enthusiasm – everyone knows everyone else, if only indirectly.

David Call


29/03/13 – 17:07

Thank you David for enlightening me!
It brought back memories of CH and his involvement with M & H TD’s unique No 72 (MTC 540) which was stored in the open at Steamtown, Carnforth in the late 70’s. This bus was new to Morecambe in 1950 and came directly from the Earls Court Commercial Vehicle show in that year. It sported original dark green livery then. The vehicle, an AEC Regent III, was the last of Morecambe’s pre-selectors and was fitted with a larger engine than its sisters. The bus is currently undergoing restoration.
I conducted No. 72 many times on the Carnforth route – a service jointly operated with Ribble. The ‘middle Carnforth’ duty (12.53 – 20.27) was a particular favourite of mine. The conductor’s place on the platform was draughty and cold (even in summer) with winds coming straight off the Bay. The driver’s turn of speed through Hest Bank and Bolton-le-Sands didn’t help either! I was told that this was the reason that AEC Regent V No. 84 (793 ATD) was fitted with rear platform doors under the control of the driver for use on this service in winter. Unfortunately he often forgot to open or close them! No.84 was the only bus in the fleet fitted with rear platform doors.
Returning to the original subject of this posting (Leyland Titan PD2/37 No. 87) I conducted this vehicle and its two sisters many times on the "Circular" route. After the relative ‘seclusion’ of rear-entry vehicles I found that standing at the front under the perpetual gaze of the passengers was somewhat unnerving! However I recall conducting this vehicle one Sunday morning in the 60’s for the ‘nurses special’. This involved gathering up these fine ladies early morning from the Queen Vic Hospital in Thornton Road presumably after working a night shift and taking them home. We did not operate over any recognised bus route but I think we went along the Promenade and Broadway at one point before starting conventional Sunday services.

Keith Nicholson


30/03/13 – 07:27

Keith, thanks for the interesting recollections of the Carnforth route. Now please correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t it linked with Overton at the other end? I believe the route went through Middleton (well I suppose it would have to do!) and then down a fairly lonely stretch of road into Overton, maybe turning round in a pub car park, where the landlady was well known for her collection of eggs. End to end I expect this would have taken at least an hour, perhaps venturing into the bus station rather than directly along the prom.

Dave Towers


30/03/13 – 12:05

Keith was a seasonal conductor with M & H C T D in the early 1960s, and the Carnforth buses didn’t start running through to Overton until the late 1970s, i.e. in consequence of the so-called ‘agency agreement’ whereby the purely local services of Ribble and (by then) Lancaster City Council were considerably recast with the operators having their agreed running costs guaranteed by Lancashire County Council, who, presumably, became the people who were required to ensure that public transport paid its way. Although both the Carnforth and Overton routes had previously been operated jointly (Ribble/Council), after the agency agreement came into effect the combined service was operated solely by Lancaster City Council. Conversely Ribble began to run some services which had been purely Council-operated. The round trip time on Carnforth-Overton was two hours, and yes, it is my recollection that the service diverted via Euston Road, but not actually going into the bus station (which may or may not have existed by that time, I’m not sure now).
By the time of the above changes the terminus at Overton had moved from the pub car park (‘Ship’ hotel, was it?) to a new turning circle at the Middleton end of the village, which I presume still exists.
These so-called ‘agency agreements’ were widespread but within a few years bus deregulation came along, this the County Councils were generally opposed to (they weren’t the only ones, of course) because it effectively undid the work they had done over the previous decade or so coordinating bus services.

David Call


31/03/13 – 17:42

Herewith a reply to Dave and David!
The Overton service in the early 60’s started from and terminated at the Battery. Anyone wanting to travel to Carnforth from Overton would then have had to take three buses! Many of the drivers at the time would have loved to operate such a ‘long’ route. It did come as David points out – but sadly too late for these fine gents. The landlady of the Ship Inn, Overton was "Ma Macluskie" – a larger than life character who wore a very wide ‘brimmed hat and had a loud laugh! As correctly stated it was the conductor’s job to see the driver back when doing an offside reverse into the pub car park. The road from Middleton Corner was indeed narrow and winding and without bus stops (no ‘hail and ride’ in those days). Unusually this fare stage cost 3d to ride (as did the other service from this point to Middleton Tower Holiday Camp [Pontins])- all other single fare stage rides in the Borough were only 2d! In the later 60’s when I had moved away the Overton service evolved into a convoluted circular route by grafting it on to a town circular taking in Regent Road, Westgate, the Branksome estate, Euston Rd Station (ERS), Promenade and Westgate again! I remember with a shudder my first time on this Westgate service which had been omitted from my route learning! I had No 84 bus (AEC Regent 5 with rear-platform doors)on a very busy wet market day and with the doors closed all the windows steamed up and I couldn’t se where we were! I received what busmen call ‘a hammering’ and had no time to alter the rear indicator blind which showed blank for most of time!
Ribble did operate an Overton service but I’m not sure how it got to the Battery – via the Promenade or via ERS. It was relatively infrequent then -rather like their L14 to Bare.

Keith Nicholson


01/04/13 – 07:45

Thanks Keith for your recollections. I don’t imagine that residents of Overton would be too impressed at being deposited at the Battery, on the edge of the town and some distance away from the majority of the shops!
I’ve just dug out an old BBF 16 (Ribble) to have a look at the local services. There was an L11, Lancaster to Overton service run, it is claimed, jointly with Morecambe and Heysham Corporation. In all my years of living in Lancaster I can honestly say I never saw a green M&H bus in Lancaster bus station (even after the University service started around 1966) so the actual operational side must have been, I reckon, all provided by Ribble.
With regard to David’s posting regarding the ending of the Agency Agreement at deregulation, I can remember a time around 1988 when LCT and Ribble were competing vigorously on the Heysham to Lancaster University services. The timetables on these services changed, it seemed, every few weeks, with each operator moving their schedules five minutes in front of the other on a regular basis. I could swear that it wasn’t long before they went all the way round the clock with it! I’m fairly sure that between them they had something like six buses an hour chasing each other around even on Sundays, a terrible waste of resources. As you will know though, eventually some kind of truce was arrived at (I think in 1989) with both operators negotiating an agreed network which showed a lot more common sense, so this sort of agreement must have been permitted under deregulation.

Dave Towers


02/04/13 – 08:12

Thanks Dave. The only time you might have seen a green M & HTD bus in Lancaster in the 60’s was around midnight when a mechanic would take the late shift workers home (those without their own transport!)However even then I suspect it would have been a rare occurrence as the driver of this bus would be very reluctant to go there and would have tried his utmost to deposit any bus employee living in Lancaster as near to Torrisholme as possible!
The Overton service more than likely followed the L6 Ribble route to Heysham (via ERS, West End Rd, Westminster Rd and Battery). No ‘green’ bus operated beyond the Battery from points further out than ERS. I have a fare table dating from 1961 showing a service to Higher Heysham (Harbour Gates) from ERS. However I think this was probably a workman’s service and in my four years there the only time I operated a green bus this way was a football special from Christie Park to Heysham. We did not have a fare table for this entire journey and I remember guesswork being the order of the day for the those riders (the majority) wishing to travel beyond the Battery from Christie Park! Similar situations could arise on a very occasional basis elsewhere and usually a paper sheet showing the fares to charge would be provided by an inspector if one was to hand. On the above occasion I had to ‘go it alone’ however. Happy memories!

Keith Nicholson


02/04/13 – 08:12

Dave T: Such agreements were certainly not permitted under deregulation. The Monopolies and Mergers Commission would have taken a very dim view of any agreement between operators, and Traffic Commissioners had powers to reduce or revoke licences.
It was generally the case where this sort of competition did not result in one operator gaining a significant advantage over the other that both operators found that there were some routes where there was no gain from continuing to operate, and withdrew, leaving the other in possession. This would normally be a common sense business decision, resulting in what looked like a common sense division of the traffic.
Any suggestions that the respective Managing Directors had happened to bump into each other in a pub a few weeks earlier are of course entirely conjectural.

Alan Murray-Rust


27/08/13 – 05:32

Just to add that Morecambe & Heysham No 77 does of course survive as well as 73 and in spite of everything is still road worthy. In fact if it hadn’t been so late I would have taken it a quick spin last night but I was a bit tired!
Does anyone know what’s happened to No 20, JTE 546 since it was advertised for sale?

Bob Armour


30/09/13 – 08:00

The Battery Hotel is now closed and boarded up, My father worked for MHTD for over 30 years and stopped when the brought in 1 manning.
The "Terminus" at the "Battery" was the plot of land opposite the Battery Hotel, the land is now a "Health centre".
And regarding a previous post regarding the "Border" of Morecambe and Heysham!! There used to be a post office between Stanley and Sefton road on the seaside of Heysham Rd next to a "Chippy" and had a "Zebra crossing" when I was a kid I was told that the "Border" was the "Zebra crossing. The crossing has now moved to the Battery.

I Bradshaw


28/07/14 – 07:44

I only found this web site by chance when trying to establish if the Trans – Pennine run still takes place on the first Sunday of August. Having lived in both Lancaster and Morecambe until January 1962 when the family moved to Peterborough I found the articles on both undertakings of great interest. I happened to visit the area only last Wednesday with my father (now 91)to see how much he remembered.
The Morecambe / Heysham border was of particular interest because my grandparents had a boarding house at 201 Heysham Road, directly opposite Rydal road and thus with a sea view. To give my father chance to look directly at the property I seemed to remember my grandmother saying that hers was the last house in Morecambe and that no. 203 was in Heysham. That would appear to be incorrect given the earlier comment.
I was always interested in transport (subsequently spending an enjoyable 40+ years in the freight industry) and whilst I have scores of old photos from the 50’s and early 60’s these are all of trucks rather than buses. I believe I have 1 odd bus photo (if I can find it) of a Leyland pulling into the bus station from Damside Street but unfortunately no story to go with it.

David Hayhurst


12/01/15 – 07:01

Does a list of what was on the destination blind of M&H buses exist anywhere?

Andy


17/01/15 – 06:12

Massey sliding doors were a victim of the usual British half cab/forward entrance body weakness found on just about every other chassis and body combination on such vehicles.
The Massey sliding door fitted to forward entrance PD2s (we had 4 of these at Baxter’s in Airdrie) would occasionally slide out of its runners, due to the amount of flexing in that area of these buses. It was therefore the case that the sliding door would rarely fall off the vehicle onto the roadway.
All of Baxter’s Massey bodied PD2s were of lowbridge configuration and the forward entrance examples made for interesting contortions by those of us who were employed as conductors. They were well liked by the drivers for their turn of speed, and ease of driving compared with the various Bristol Lodekkas we had in the fleet, which was under control of the SBG Eastern Scottish company when I was there.

Mr Anon


25/04/15 – 09:21

Andy there is a book called ‘Morecambe and Heysham’ by a Harry Postlethwaite. This has a fleet list in and is the history of MHTD Isbn number 978 190530 4424.

Ian Bradshaw


20/11/15 – 06:44

My dad was a bus driver in Morecambe, in the 1970’s (Ribble, not Corporation). Orginally there was a tram route between Morecambe and Heysham, and when drivers got a shift on that service they still said they were "on track", presumably from the days when the old tramlines were still in the road. Does anyone know if they still say this?

Vaughan Birbeck


21/11/15 – 06:03

Vaughan, the entire Lancaster-Morecambe-Heysham route (L6, later 570) was always known to Ribble crews as ‘the track’. I believe there are or were other operators (Midland Red is one of which I am aware) who also had a ‘track’.
I’ve not previously heard the suggestion that the term arose from the existence of tram tracks, and don’t know what to make of the idea really. As far as I am aware trams never operated between Lancaster and Morecambe – electric trams ran locally in Lancaster, horse trams in Morecambe, and petrol trams (I believe) between Morecambe Battery and Heysham (it may have been to the Strawberry Gardens, I’m not sure).
I worked at Ribble’s Morecambe depot through most of the 1970s (as a conductor, and later driver) and knew your father well.

David Call


21/11/15 – 09:34

The famous West Riding route 10 from Wakefield to Leeds (now 110) was (is?) known as "the track" and replaced (and even tried to imitate) the trams along this route.

Joe


22/11/15 – 06:55

The Tynemouth and District service 8 from North Shields Ferry Landing to the Bandstand at Whitley Bay, was also known as ‘The Track’ because it followed the exact route of the former tram route

Ronnie Hoye


22/11/15 – 06:56

Some interesting thoughts here about the origins of "The Track", as it relates to the Lancaster & Morecambe area. I have – but it’s hidden behind a pile of stuff that normally lives under the model railway, while I do some major work on said model – an early 1900’s map of the area, and it does show SOME tram tracks. I’ll have a look to see if they did or did not run cross boundary.

Pete Davies


22/11/15 – 08:55

www.old-maps.co.uk has a 1913 1:2500 OS map which shows a tramway which can be traced from the Lune Bridge through to Morecambe where it terminates by going round the Euston Rd/Market St???/Cheapside/Moss Lane block, there is no indication that it is 2 tramways meeting end to end at the boundary. It does not appear to connect with the sea front tramway.

John Lomas


22/11/15 – 11:31

My ‘initiation’ with Midland Red, after route learning was ‘The Track’ – service 201 Smethwick to Worlds End. It was almost some sort of sadistic punishment, a D5 (no power steering) and 18 islands within some 5-6 miles! This was supposed to be shared between Digbeth & Bearwood garages. I still believe I was the only one from Digbeth, my arms hurt as I write!

Nigel Edwards


23/11/15 – 06:34

I’ve unearthed the book of maps. I can confirm that the Lancaster & District (horse-drawn) operation did cross the boundary at Torrisholme and it terminated in Market Street, Morecambe. The notes to map reference 434638 say that there was no connection with Morecambe Corporation’s (horse-drawn) operation along the seafront.

Pete Davies


23/11/15 – 06:34

Huddersfield services 370/1 between Lindley and Dalton/Rawthorpe are still known as ‘the track’ – maybe to do with the former trolleybus services on this route.

Ian Wild


24/11/15 – 13:46

I can’t now remember the Midland Red route I saw referred to as ‘The Track’, but I’m sure it wasn’t Smethwick to Worlds End. I think it’s likely that every significant depot would have had its own particular ‘track’.

David Call


25/11/15 – 07:25

The Midland Red route I remember being referred to as ‘The Track’ was the B87 Birmingham to Dudley via Smethwick and Oldbury, but as you say, David, there were probably others.

Allan White


33 MTD_lr Vehicle reminder shot for this posting


03/01/19 – 06:29

For research purposes does anyone know why Morecambe & Heysham stopped their 40 year ‘nothing but AEC’ purchasing policy in 1960 when they bought the first of five Leyland PD2s??

Howard


03/01/19 – 16:32

I believe it was caused by the retirement of one Manager and the appointment of his replacement. Others may have a closer working knowledge of what happened in M&H. I was in Lancaster, and the two Councils didn’t "get on"!!!

Pete Davies


05/01/19 – 09:02

Leyland were always very persistent in pressing their claim to supply local authorities in Lancashire. I suspect they may have had a special campaign to drum up extra business round the end of the 50s. Even Nottingham, whose only previous experience of Leylands was 30 TTB3 trolleybuses in 1935, took 44 PD2/40s in 1958/59. There must have been some serious inducement to break with the tried and tested AEC Regents.

Stephen Ford


 

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W Gash & Sons – Daimler CVD6 – KAL 580 – DD3

W Gash & Sons - Daimler CVD6 - KAL 580 - DD3

W Gash & Sons
1948
Daimler CVD6
Strachans but possible rebodied by Massey 1962

I have cobbled together this info from too many to mention web sites if you know more let me know. Also I can’t remember for the life in me where I was when I took the photo possible Nottingham as the bus behind is a Barton Transport fleet no 703.

A full list of Daimler codes can be seen here.


The location is undoubtedly Nottingham Huntingdon Street bus station – long since disused.

It may be of interest that Huntingdon Street bus station was host to no less than ten different operators in the 1950s – Trent (about 12 routes or groups of routes), Barton (4), East Midland (3 joint with Trent), Midland General (3), Mansfield District (2), South Notts (2), Lincolnshire (1 joint with Trent), Skills (1 joint with Trent), W Gash (2) and Nottingham City Transport (1) – a mish-mash of AECs, Leylands, Daimlers, Bristols and the occasional Guy, in various shades of blue, green, red, purple and brown.

Stephen Ford


This is the bus I went to school on and it is DD3

JB


In addition the other bus companies were
East Midland who operated services to Doncaster & Retford via Farnsfield Bilsthorpe Edwinstowe and Ollerton
United Counties operated a London service via Northampton
Black & White Coachways to Cheltenham
Taylor Bros & Hall Bros services to Newcastle
Royal Blue operated from Maidenhead on Saturdays
Skills Scenicruisers services to Bridlington on Saturdays
Midland Red to Ashby de la Zouch/Birmingham
East Yorkshire to Scarborough on Saturdays
Lincolnshire road car to Ingoldmells Mablethorpe and I think possibly Skegness
Yorkshire Traction to Leeds via Sheffield, Barnsley and Wakefield… later as part of what was combined by United Counties/Yorkshire Traction to form the first Leeds – London service changing at Huntingdon street.

Huntingdon street bus station long before the national express routes we know today was a major hub/interchange link for all of the above operators there were a few others as I remember but at this moment in time cannot remember their details hoping this adds a little more info to your entry.

Mickey Summers (New York)


Hi Mickey, you are quite right about the other operators. I only listed the regular local and interurban bus routes, as opposed to longer distance coach services, though some of the local operators (Trent and Barton in particular) also ran coach services, mainly to the east coast resorts. By the early 1950s (the earliest I can remember) Midland Red’s X99 Birmingham service had been transferred to Mount Street bus station, where it shared platform 6 with selected Trent routes. Actually Mount Street only had 3 platforms, numbered 4 (Midland General/Notts & Derby), 5 (Barton) and 6. Not sure why there was no 1,2 or 3! I think the idea of Mount Street was to hive off all the routes that left the city in a north westerly direction via Canning Circus, so that they didn’t have to fight their way through increasing traffic around Huntingdon Street.

Stephen Ford


Well now, there’s another operator that I had forgotten at Huntingdon Street. North Western were equal partners with Trent on route X2 to Manchester, via Ilkeston, Ripley, Matlock, Buxton and Stockport. It was "limited stop" rather than a true express service, and also had a strict "no setting-down" restriction until after Ripley (to protect Midland General’s B2).

Stephen Ford


This area was a hive of activity in those days, across from the bus station were the Central Markets, opposite was the Palais-de-Danse, there was also a short cut for bus passengers wishing to get to Victoria Railway Station. Strange how the focal point of a city can be altered over the years, I suppose construction of the two shopping centres led to that. I was often taken on shopping trips to Nottingham by my parents and we usually concluded the shopping down the Huntingdon Street end, I always enjoyed a visit to Notts but the one thing I hated was the long trek back to Mount Street to get our (Midland General) bus home! Today, Huntingdon Street is quite a dead area, apart from passing traffic, and so too, for that matter is Mount Street!

Chris Barker


11/03/11 – 09:30

Is the saloon next to the Gash decker a Barton’s own built MK2 Veiwmaster?

Roger Broughton


11/03/11 – 16:05

Roger – in a word yes! And lovely vehicles they were to travel in too. Comfortable coach type seats, and orange Perspex panels in the roof which could make even a dismal wet November day seem sunny – until you alighted of course! I have spent many a happy half hour travelling from Long Eaton to Nottingham in one of these on routes 3/3C, 10 and 11 in the mid 1950s.

Stephen Ford


11/03/11 – 16:10

Re Mickey Summers comment above: I can think of two more operators not mentioned as yet, West Yorkshire Road Car Co (whose coaches were in daily use on the Yorkshire Services pool), and Ribble Motor Services who contributed to the X2/X60 connection to Blackpool – more often than not a through vehicle in the summer months with everything from all-Leyland Royal Tiger coaches to BET Federation 36 ft service buses in drab all-over red appearing in Huntingdon Street.
Does anybody know why Nottingham corporation route 25 terminated there, or to put it another way why just the 25?
Fond memories. The iconic tram-shed is still in place and currently being advertised as luxury apartments. A great shame – it would have made a superb bus museum for the area and with the vehicles known to be in preservation a passable good recreation of Huntingdon Street in its heyday could have been held on a regular basis. If I ever win the jackpot on the Lottery those flats are being ripped back out again!

Neville Mercer


12/03/11 – 07:05

In answer to Neville, the 25 was the last of three NCT routes that originally started/terminated at Huntingdon Street. It was a circular to Mapperly Westdale Lane – out via Carlton, in via Sherwood (25A in the opposite direction). In the 1930s it was virtually an out of town service, going to the limits of where housing development was just starting. The other two were to Hucknall via Basford and Bulwell (route 22 at the time) – later discontinued as Trent served that area; and route 19 to Lenton Abbey, near the University campus. Geoff Atkins’ photos show AEC Reliances in Huntingdon Street on routes 22 and 25, and a 1935 Regent/Northern Counties with its blind set to "19, Huntingdon St Bus Stn via Derby Road and Wollaton Street."

Stephen Ford


29/08/11 – 16:16

Re operators of Daimler buses with Massey bodywork – Peter Gould lists in SHMD Fleet List four Daimler buses owned by SHMD with Massey bodywork. They are HMA 12 (Daimler CWG6) and HMA 155,156 and 157 (all CWA6’s). Info of any interest?

Peter Crossley


25/12/11 – 18:49

Just been reading through the site on Huntingdon Street bus station Nottingham.
I was a conductor with Trent Motor Traction from 1968 to 1983 then driver from 1983 to 1991, I have conducted on the Manchester service X2 and the Great Yarmouth service, and local services, great remembering the old bus station

Stephen Morrell


26/12/11 – 10:49

Stephen, just reading your comment above made me think you may be able to help me with some research I am undertaking re. the end of crew operation around the UK. I don’t have a final date for Trent; you mention you were still a conductor in 1983 which I imagine must be close to the date when Trent became 100% o-p-o. Any idea when the final date may have been, please?

Dave Towers


02/01/12 – 12:57

In reply to Dave Towers, I passed my bus test 10/10/1983 and I was one of the last conductors to go driving at the Nottingham depot there could well have been some after me at the Derby depot. So I would think by end of October 1983 it would have been 100% o.m.o, hope this helps, (might be able to find out exactly still know one or two at Nottingham) who might be able to help me.

Stephen Morrell


08/02/12 – 15:37

Regarding the comments on Strachans, I have been trying to ascertain their history without much success. I do have a photograph of the interior of their works in West Acton in 1935 with a line of Austin Taxi’s all bodied by Strachans. I live in France and have discovered a 1935 Austin taxi with a body by Strachans which I am renovating. I am missing the small brass plaque which says "Body by Strachans" and their address, if anybody has such an item I would be delighted to purchase it.

Peter London


13/02/12 – 15:56

Strachans at Hamble did indeed start in London. The ‘history’ is not ‘straightforward’, and may well get put into a book in due course ! (A not particularly accurate article did appear in an ‘Annual’ some years ago).
The origins of the firm were with W E Brown, who began as a coachbuilder in Shepherds Bush in the 1890s. He went into partnership with S A Hughes – and – as Brown & Hughes – they bodied many of the earliest motor buses (including the initial Milnes Daimlers at Eastbourne) – in fact they later claimed to build the first double deck motor bus ever made. In 1907 B & H were joined by J M Strachan, and the firm was renamed Brown, Hughes & Strachan – a company registered in December 1908. J M Strachan was also proprietor of Aberdonia Cars – also with a factory in Shepherds Bush (he came from near Aberdeen), and BH & S bodied these. They moved to new premises at the (then new) industrial estate of Park Royal in 1912, and in early WW1 work included ambulances. However, Messrs Brown and Strachan were removed as directors in April 1915, and in June that year there was a disastrous fire. Meanwhile, Messrs Brown and Strachan set up a new firm – trading from July 1915 from premises in Kensington where BH & S had been previously — the firm being a partnership under the title Strachan and Brown (ie not a ‘registered company’). They built – amongst other things – aircraft during WW1, and from 1920 or so got back to ‘what they knew best’ – ie motor vehicle bodies. Several patents were granted for special springing, opening windows, opening roof etc. They often built bodies for chassis builders who had quoted for ‘complete vehicles’, (AEC and W&G for example) as well as supplying bodies ‘direct’. S&B moved to a new, purpose built factory (designed by J M Strachan) in 1923 at Wales Farm Road, Acton.
However, there was a ‘disagreement’ between Brown and Strachan, such that in November 1928 the Commercial Motor announced the partnership had been dissolved. (There were related court hearings). At this point, W E Brown became a director and principal of Duples (where 2 of his sons also held senior positions). It is at this point that Duple’s coachbody sales ‘accelerated’.
The firm at Acton then became just ‘Stachans’. However, J M Strachan died in June 1929 – and the firm never quite had the same flair having lost both of its founders. From October 1929, the company became Strachans (Acton) Ltd. A further name change came in August 1934, when the name Strachans Successors Ltd is adopted – and the firm continues under this title until well after WW2. A holding company – Giltspur – then acquired the business, and they subsequently moved production to Hamble, Hampshire, on part of the airfield there, ‘A’ and ‘G’ Hangars were leased to Strachans by April 1960 (possibly earlier). Later this became part of a specialist vehicle building group called Glover Webb (who made armoured land rover type vehicles), but the airfield was sold in 1984 for housing, by which time Strachans as such had ceased to exist.

Peter Delaney


14/02/12 – 07:39

Further to Peter Delaneys helpful info, a web search reveals that a meeting took place on March 30th 1976 at which it was agreed to wind up Strachans Coachbuilders Limited and Strachans Engineering Limited. This ties up with the reported move of Glover Webb to Hamble around that time. Any suggestions for the last Strachans bus body to be built?

Nigel Turner


14/02/12 – 07:42

Thx Peter, for this concise history of a company with a complicated past! I’ve read titbits over the years and they’ve conflicted, unsurprisingly.
Despite finishing up in Hamble, Strachans were not really supported by its neighbouring bus operators. Only Provincial gave them an order for nine single-deck Seddon/Strachans in 1968, which might well have been a unique combination.

Chris Hebbron


14/02/12 – 07:43

Thanks for that, Peter. Looks like another case of a great might have been (such as I have mentioned before – Metalcraft, Sentinel and Foden). In that period of "get what you can, when you can" in the immediate post war period, Sheffield’s only PS2 Tigers (most were PS1) had Strachans bodies. A long way to go for emergency provisions!

David Oldfield


14/02/12 – 11:23

I think Chris you have overlooked the 6 AEC Swifts Numbers 1-6 taken by Southampton Corporation in 1967/68.

Pat Jennings


14/02/12 – 16:34

Ah, Yes, Pat, I stand corrected on them!

Chris Hebbron


06/04/12 – 15:39

I was one of the last conductors at W Gash I was the only one in April 1986 until October 1986 when the rms came, conductors stayed until the last day of Gash existence

Anthony Townsend


16/11/12 – 07:38

Regarding Strachans bodies, I understand that some of those built in the 60s included faults that limited their life. Those purchased by Wolverhampton on Guy Arab V chassis in 1967, were scrapped after only 7 years and most of the chassis were sold to Hong Kong.

Tony Martin

20/05/13 – 16:46

With reference to Lincolnshire Road Car running from Huntingdon Street to the Lincs East Coast. This was Express service A and started from the Skills booking office on Alfreton Road (Peveril Terrace) and proceeded to Huntingdon Street. It then ran via Newark and Lincoln (same route as Trent) but branched off in Wragby to Mablethorpe via Louth. From Mablethorpe it travelled down the A52, through Sutton on Sea, and diverting off the main road calling at Anderby Creek and Chapel St. Leonards before continuing to Ingoldmells. The service terminated at Butlins. I have fond memories of making this journey with my parents regularly to Chapel St. Leonards, as we had a caravan there from 1949 onwards. Bristol L types were the mode of transport of my childhood, painted in the "coach" style of predominantly cream with Tilling green lining – a reverse of the stage carriage livery on these vehicles.

Brian Binns


01/05/18 – 06:05

A bit more miscellaneous info for Peter Delaney. I am not sure of the date but following a fairly lengthy strike, we were all brought into the office at 1000 on a Friday morning and told that the company was closing and we had to be out by 1200. Probably late 72 or early 73. A very sad time as some of the old hands had even built their toolboxes into the walls. They brought a few people back on a six week contract to clean up and sort out the drawings etc. ready for the take over. There were only a few of the Ford Transit chassis/cowls remaining as Fords had removed most of their stock before the strike started. I quickly lost contact with the drawing office staff although I did hear that Neil Moore who was the Chief Draftsman with Strachans did stay on with the new owners. In the latter days we were looking at building dedicated school buses similar to the North American style as they also used the truss panel construction methods. We also spent time working on the drawings for how to ship buses out in CKD and SKD for overseas assembly but the end came first.

Dick Henshall


15/02/21 – 06:18

X2 (Trent and North Western joint service to Manchester) ran direct to Ripley, via Eastwood, I think, not Ilkeston. The Barton service to Blackpool ran via Ilkeston.

John Bremner


15/02/21 – 15:16

Just been checking my 1953 Trent timetable, and the X2 definitely ran via Ilkeston, not Eastwood. (Actually it is mentioned in Neville Mercer’s excellent 3-part article on Huntingdon Street bus station on this site). It took only 21 minutes to Ilkeston, compared with the Midland General all stops B2 schedule of 27 minutes for the shorter run from Mount Street.The X2 was, of course, limited stop and only had 21 stops between Nottingham to Buxton. From Nottingham to Heanor they were Radford Boulevard, Wollaton (Doctor’s Corner), Trowell Church, Ilkeston Market Place, Ilkeston Rutland Arms, Shipley ‘Brick and Tile’.

Stephen Ford


16/02/21 – 05:56

It would make sense to run the limited stop service via Ilkeston rather than Eastwood. Although approx. half a mile longer, there were substantial sections of open countryside between Wollaton and Trowell and between Ilkeston and Heanor, whereas the route via Eastwood was even then essentially continuously built up, with probably very little derestricted road. A check on Google shows that even today, following the old routes, it’s about 5 minutes quicker via Ilkeston than via Eastwood. (You wouldn’t normally do it that way today, as the Kimberley/Eastwood bypass has eliminated much of the congested section of route.)

Alan Murray-Rust


17/02/21 – 07:09

The Barton (formerly Robin Hood) Nottingham-Blackpool service (X61) travelled via Kimberley, Eastwood, Heanor etc rather than Ilkeston.
Robin Hood timetable Winter 1959-1960:
//www.ipernity.com/doc/davidslater-spoddendale/37286302
Barton X61 timetable Summer 1968:
//www.ipernity.com/doc/davidslater-spoddendale/37286308

David Slater


18/02/21 – 07:14

I notice that the last picking up point going north and first setting down point going south was Stockport but there’s no mention of any restrictions from the Nottingham end. Does anyone know if local passengers were carried on the section Ripley, Matlock, Bakewell and Buxton?

Chris Barker


18/02/21 – 14:44

The Summer 1970 Express Coach Guide (first ABC successor) shows fares between Ripley and all stops to its west. There are no local fares shown between Matlock and Buxton. It’s an indicator of circumstances but not 100% reliable and a check of the actual licence records would provide the best confirmation.
Regarding the Bolton stop annotations these restrictions did not apply to the daily journeys – just the Friday and Sunday evening extras.
Given North Western and Trent’s presence on the corridor, all operating rights would be hard fought for.

Mike Grant


18/02/21 – 14:45

I cannot be sure. In the aforementioned 1953 timetable the X2 was described as limited stop – not express. In those days limited stop seemed to mean that it would only call at specified stops. I do believe that Midland General would have been "protected" on the Nottingham – Ripley section, though the X2’s four journeys per day wouldn’t abstract a lot of traffic. MGO ran their own limited stop service taking 41 minutes Nottm – Ripley (route A4 – did they pinch that monika from the railway?!) The X2 took 43 minutes – but for the longer run from Huntingdon Street. My impression was that "beyond Ripley) was regarded as the first setting down point. The notes in the timetable do say that after Buxton the X2 would stop "at any official stopping place" through to Manchester. (We’re getting a long way from Gash’s CVD6 aren’t we!)

Stephen Ford


KAL 580_lr Vehicle reminder shot for this posting


29/09/21 – 04:37

With regard to the X2 service, Trent timetables state that the first setting down point on journeys from Nottingham and the last picking up point on journeys to Nottingham is at Bull Bridge. This is about 3 miles beyond Ripley and so would give protection to MGO/NDT services A1/B1/B2/C6/E7 etc between these points.

Philip Backhurst


 

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