Photograph by ‘unknown’ if you took this photo please go to the copyright page.

Halifax Corporation Transport and Joint Omnibus Committee
1948
AEC Regent III
Park Royal H30/26R

Here we have one of a batch of the 76 AEC buses that Halifax ordered after the war to replace some of its well worn pre-war vehicles, they were mainly Regents with a few Regals. Most of the Regents were bodied by Park Royal and were not much different from the one above, there was an handful of Regents bodied by Roe who actually bodied all the Regals.
This actual bus was originally fleet number 324 and being above number 200 that would of put it in the ‘B’ fleet which was owned by the JOC but it was transferred and renumbered 59 in 1952 which would then put it in the ‘A’ fleet which was owned by the corporation. The ‘A’ fleet ran services within the borough boundary and the ‘B’ fleet ran services into the surrounding villages from Halifax.
I have included a close up of the above photo showing a small number 3 just below the offside headlamp, I have quite a few shots of Halifax buses and a number like below appears on one or two shots but not all by a long way, Does anybody know what they were for. I have heard something about class numbers given to certain batches of buses could they be that. If you know please leave a comment.

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12/02/11 – 09:20

Yes, I think you are correct – the small numbers referred to class or batch numbers – but I do recall they were only applied to Corporation buses, not the Joint Omnibus Committee.

Eric R Sykes

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13/02/11 – 06:33

Presumably these are the ones that had to have the front upper deck windows strengthened due to the very slender corner pillars? Does anyone know if the whole batch was so treated, I know one was sold to West Bridgford UDC, I imagine the remedial work had been done before being sold.

Chris Barker

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18/08/11 – 11:49

According to the Peter Gould website, it was No.47 (ACP 421) that was sold to West Bridgford in 1963, becoming No.19 there. (By this late date it seems certain that the strengthening mod. would have been carried out). New in 1945, re-seated by WBUDC with the seats from their former No.19 (HNN 776) – a 1947 (!) Regent/Park Royal that had been withdrawn in 1962. ACP 421 was finally withdrawn in 1967.

Stephen Ford

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Your right there Stephen just happen to have a shot of it with rebuilt upper windows. I see what you mean in the Huddersfield CCX 778 thread that’s one eck of a destination display.

Peter

United Automobile Services
1950
Bristol LL6B
ECW B39R

This bus has been on this website before it was one of the first and I did not research into it as well as I could of done, but as this bus is in the process of being preserved I think I should do it justice. 
This bus entered service with United in 1951 as a LL5G – B39R with a fleet number of BG460. All that coding meant it was classed as a long version of a Bristol L with bus seating and livery, with a 7.0 litre 5 cylinder Gardner engine.
In 1953 (I had 1963 here but from a comment below by David Hudson I was ten years out) it would appear it was re-engined with a Bristol 8.1 litre 6 cylinder engine the seating was reduced to 33 and the class changed to duel purpose making it a LL6B – DP33R with a fleet number of BBE1. At this time I think it would of been re-painted to Cream and Red more or less a reversal of the above shot which was the colour scheme for United ‘Express’ vehicles. 
In 1961 it seems it was re-classed back to a bus I am not sure if the seating was increased back to 39 though (see David Hudsons comment), the fleet number was also changed to BB51 but later that year the the first ‘B’ which stood for Bristol was dropped. The bus must have been repainted back to Red and Cream as the above photo was taken after 1964.
Two years later 1966 it was withdrawn from service with United passing to W Norths Limited, Sherburn-in-Elmet (dealer) between Leeds and York in 1967. Fortunately it was bought by a contractor as a staff bus and not scrapped, I am not sure how long it was with the contractor but eventually it was bought by a private individual for preservation.

Looking along the side of B51, an extra strip of aluminium beading beneath the windows (curving down towards the front) can be seen. This was presumably added by United as extra brightwork, when it was upgraded to express standard and repainted cream and red. On being demoted back to bus duties, and resuming its original red and cream livery, it looks like the beading was simply painted over. West Yorkshire Road Car gave the same treatment to its LS5G express vehicles in later life, when converting them to buses. Shame on both counts that the beading couldn’t have been just left polished as nature intended.

Brendan Smith

When I  was a lad one holiday the family went on service 43 from Leeds to Scarborough. I think the bus was a Lodekka. On our return we joined a long queue at Westwood to return to Leeds. An inspector announced that a bus was going to depart but would be nonstop to Seacroft and Vicar Lane only. The bus came on to the stand and was a West Yorkshire L. The driver must have had a date with a  lady as we literally flew to Leeds. Although this was donkey years ago it has stuck in my mind. Later in my career I drove Bristol Ks at Southend corporation which were on hire from Eastern National.

Philip Carlton

I’m building a 4mm scale layout based in the Northeast and would like a model of this bus (preferably in United livery)
Does anybody out there know of a source?
Thanks,
Trevor Elliot,
Bellingham WA USA

As the present owner of NHN 128, just a few comments on its history. Vehicle converted to dual purpose in 1953, using seats from earlier L6Bs. Fitted with Bristol engine at this time. 1961 re-seated to B39R using seats from earlier vehicles with wooden grab rails. Sold to Buxted Chickens (Ross Poultry) seeing service until 1976. Awaiting restoration following fire damage in 1980s

David Hudson

In answer to Trevor Elliot, Corgi OOC made that model (I have two) I bought them off e-bay, I think I paid about £8.00 each plus P+P

Jimmy

18/12/12 – 07:53

In the early 50’s I was a driver at Scarborough depot seasonal only, but later transferred to Redcar on a permanent basis. I spent many an hour driving up and down Scarborough seafront, but my favourite run was service 58 Scarborough to Whitby and Middlesbrough.
The fleet numbers I remember were BB,BBE,BH,BG. My memory isn’t too good now,but if you think I can be of any help don’t hesitate to ask me.

Robert Robinson

Photograph by ‘unknown’ if you took this photo please go to the copyright page.

West Yorkshire Road Car Company
1948
Bedford OB
Beadle B30F

West Yorkshire needed a few small buses for certain routes to replace there pre-war Leyland and Dennis small buses. Bristol who were the main supplier of buses to West Yorkshire as they were controlled by the B.T.C. were not producing any small lightweight buses at the time so they ordered four Bedford OBs has the photo above.

FWX 547    Initially numbered 614 -       renumbered SP1 in April 1954

FWX 548                                 615 -                           SP2

FWX 549                               K616 -                         KSP3

FWX 550                               K617 -                         KSP4

The first two were based at Harrogate and were for the Cornwall Road route which is the destination of the bus in the photo, other local services were also undertaken in Harrogate by the two Bedfords. The other two Bedfords were based at Keighley (the "K" prefix was for Keighley-West Yorkshire) and were used on the Riddlesden service which had a weak wood canal swing bridge.
West Yorkshire also had a Bedford OB coach with a Duple C26F body built in 1947 registration FWW 596 fleet number CP1 it was based in York and was used for summer city tours. I think it was the only one based at York but if you know different please leave a comment.

A full list of West Yorkshire codes can be seen here.

Copy contributed by Chris Youhill

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You may be right in thinking CP1 was the only one of the little Bedford OBs based at York Chris. It was one of two OB coaches supplied to West Yorkshire in 1947 (646/7: FWW596/7). A further two arrived the following year (648/9: FWW598/9), all had Duple C26F coachwork and the batch was renumbered CP1-4 in 1954. CP1 was given an overhaul in 1957 at Central Works, and alterations to the coachwork included fitting of cantrail windows and perspex roof panels for its new role as the York city tour coach. It was withdrawn in 1968, being replaced by none other than CF1 (8848 WY), one of the two Ford Thames/Duple coaches taken over with the Samuel Ledgard business.

Brendan Smith

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CP1 is now fully restored and in the Aire Valley Transport Group collection

Chris Hough

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Bedford OBs are just like a big car don’t you think, and the crash gearbox wine was just a great sound.

Anonymous

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With respect Anonymous I can’t agree there – the OBs were incredible commercial passenger chassis with "hearts of oak." The amount of heavy service work that they could reliably perform with their modest 28 hp petrol engines was just phenomenal. I’ve had the pleasure, thrill even, of steadily ascending some very long forbidding hills with full loads – for example Norwood Edge from Farnley in West Yorkshire. The wartime service OWBs put in even more incredible performances than their peacetime luxury coach kin. I agree though that the melodious howl of the gearboxes in the first three ratios, followed by the "silent calm after the storm" in top was just wonderful.

Chris Youhill