"My memories of A Mayne & Son"

I lived along with A Mayne & son most my life now being 53. I have a tape recording in the loft of an AEC ride from Stevenson Sq to Sunnyside Road, I loved the sound of the AEC engine, the only other AEC's were LU?s I lived in Shakespeare Rd just off the main route. Most nights laying in bed you could hear the last bus around 10.50pm pulling away from St. Stephens in the so quite nights back then.

My first memories of Maynes is that I went to Manor Road primary school and used to go home for dinner. You would run to the bus stop outside school at 12pm now at this time for some reason (it was route number 46) either a Maynes old bus like a RT came along (the chocolate bus) or a corpo (Manchester red) we all wanted the corpo because it just felt more comfy and warm, we would even let the chocolate bus go if the corpo was behind it.

In my last year outside primary was none other than 'BORIS' a very well known mad, fast driver with a bald head, he had been to the tip next to the school and had a flat tyre, me and my mate gave him a hand to change the tyre, he thanked us and said next time we were on his bus we would get a free ride, true to his word we got those free rides when he saw us waiting at the stop.

When they got rid of the rear doored buses they got one man operated buses still in maroon (now route 213) but still used a conductor these were now this is straight from memory LRJ 210P through to LRJ 214P as then I thought they were 4 buses in fact if you add up correctly it is actually five, eventually they were painted red and cream. Maynes were the only service we used to and from town 20min intervals requiring three buses during the day more at rush hour and Saturdays. At weekends and during the week they started using maroon coaches (used for excursions as well) in the evenings I think there were follow on LRJs as well but not sure.

Well that is about all I can remember about the great Maynes bus at what I would call its best time, it went downhill after deregulation buying all kinds of old bangers and single deckers.

After the LRJs came two Bristol's followed by another two later on with another make as well in between that I cannot remember still that would be easy to find looking at a history, this is all from memory going back some 35 years. As I just remembered some new ones were new M reg? and one of those was painted in maroon and green to celebrate 75 years anniversary.

As an epitaph to my memories I was always fascinated by the ARTHUR MAYNES GARAGE on Ashton New road, we had a builders yard down the road so passed it all the time, in the evenings the garage was lit up in green fluorescents for the Maynes name, the garage was always painted clean white, anyway on with the end. In the early 90's my late father had a part time job through the night serving petrol from the all night kiosk at the station (time the Bovas arrived) needless to say with him being on his own he used to let me walk around the depot (dreamland) of course you could go in the buses and cabs. One night I woke my own 6 year old son up to take him around the garage. He always remembers it and refers it to a dreamlike remembrance. Now the garage is pulled down and the superstores built the only thing left is the coach depot off Bank Street funnily enough in the are where Man Utd first played. You cannot see much as there is just a gateway but they still have lovely coaches of all colours.

I asked my father to inquire to David Mayne at the time why were all the coaches different colour designs, his reply was that the public would notice coaches of the same name but with different colouring and not be reflective of a fleet with a sanitized colour scheme.

Well those are my very happy halcyon memories of my time with Maynes I just wish I could go back and do it all again.

N Mather
05/2010

Photos kindly supplied by Tony Johnstone who was driving the Bristol at the time the shot was taken.

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