Classic Buses

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I can always rely on Chris Stanley to recognise a great photo when he sees one, and this is no exception. Michael Clarke took the picture, and Chris passed it on. Many thanks to both of you.

No doubt most of you will recognise what it is - JPL 179K is a Leyland PDR1A/1 Atlantean / Park Royal H72D, delivered to London Country in 1972 as number AN79. Ian Smith's excellent website says that it spent most of its working life based at Harlow and was withdrawn in 1988. By 1991 it was working for Wealden Omnibus of Five Oak Green, but by the end of that year it had been acquired for preservation, and it still survives today.

I can tell you where it is. This is the delightful East Sussex village of Mayfield, about 5 miles up the road from where I live. The 252 route runs from Tunbridge Wells, via Mayfield, to Heathfield, changes its number to the 52 at the end of my road, and then continues south to Eastbourne. This used to be a joint operation between Southdown and Maidstone & District for many years, but then Southdown was gone, Maidstone & District was gobbled up by Arriva, and the route became a surprise venture for Eastbourne Buses. Only in the last year has the name changed again, because Eastbourne Buses (more than a century old) has been taken over by Stagecoach, and now it's anybody's guess what Stagecoach bus will turn up on this route on a given day.

Not a 'classic bus'? Well it's the same age as my beloved MGB, and nobody's going to tell me that's not a classic!

So when was it photographed? And why is the bus facing the wrong way, in the snow, apparently abandoned, opposite the charismatic Middle House Hotel in Mayfield High Street? Well, here's a theory. Maybe Maidstone & District contracted it to operate the 252 at some time in early 1991 (did it snow that year?) and the bus got parked up there, because the rather steep and narrow roads in and out of the village became impassable. Can anyone confirm this, or add anything further? Email me if you have any clues. Meanwhile thanks again to Michael and Chris for the photo.

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OK chaps - what's this? John Wakefield wrote "I have permission from Terry Walker (via Richard Mellor) for this to be published on your website. Terry is happy for the photograph (taken recently in Happisburgh, Norfolk) to be circulated, and hopefully someone can tell him what it is! The vehicle has solid tyres which suggests (in combination with the body style) that it is from the 1924-1927 period."

My first guess was that it was a Garrett O trolleybus. Ipswich bought some very much like that in 1926. But that turned out to be a red herring, as a local report suggests it's not from Ipswich but is a 1920s bus body on some other non-psv chassis. Reports say it was owned by a showman in Aylesbury in the 1950s, later moved to Debach airfield in Suffolk in the 1960s, and to Happisburgh by the 1980s where it was used as a beach hut. Ipswich Transport Museum are apparently aware of it, but have no particular interest. So what is it? And is it worth saving?

The O'Hara Leyland Tiger was identified by Robert Preston and Peter Tulloch as being ex Wallace Arnold JNW 376, a rebodied 1940 Tiger TS8 when working for a showman in the late 1950s, but still wearing the name of O'Hara,Spennymoor, with whom it had served from 1954 to 1957.

Welcome to the home of classic buses and coaches on the net. I'm Dick Gilbert. This site is all about nostalgia for British passenger transport vehicles from the 1930s to the 1960s, with an unashamed bias towards 'halfcabs'.

Each page has a different colour scheme which is supposed to be reminiscent of some bus or coach company from the era, and this one is meant to represent Western / Southern National. As a result of this arrangement, some of the pages are hard to read, and some will scramble your brain. That's life for you.

My interest in British buses began in the late 1950s and early 1960s, and the buses and coaches that were around then are all 'classics' now. It was an interesting period, when there were still pre-war and wartime 'utility' machines about (although mostly on the point of retirement), and a large number of halfcab vehicles that had been built immediately after the war. At the same time, new products like the Leyland Atlantean, AEC Regent V, and a host of 'modern' coach designs (Plaxton Panorama, Harrington Cavalier, Weymann Fanfare etc.) were appearing. It was a transitional period when vehicles from the 1930s, 40s, 50s and 60s could all be seen in use at the same time.

Having been born in south London, London Transport was the first operator that I lived with, then we moved to Sussex and I grew up with Southdown, Maidstone & District, East Kent, and the municipal fleets of Eastbourne and Brighton, as well as the large number of excursion coaches that used to visit the south coast every summer.

In the early 1960s I used to make trips to London to visit Victoria Coach Station, or see the last of the London Transport trolleybuses, or the last half-cab single deckers (TD's). Unfortunately, although I saw what I went to see, most of the photographs I took are not particularly brilliant, or have been lost. However I do have some black & white pictures taken at Victoria Coach Station, London, and in Sussex between 1960 and 1962 which are barely reasonable, and some of them appear around this site. Here's one;

This was taken at 'The Crumbles', Eastbourne, in the summer of 1962, where Claude Lane was running the narrow gauge Eastbourne Tramway (now moved to Seaton, Devon). He had used this ex Lincolnshire Road Car Leyland KPZ01 Cub as a lorry in the past, and it was left to rot outside his depot. New in May 1937 it was FW 8855, originally fleet number LC502, one of thirty delivered that year with Brush B20F bodies. I guess someone might rescue it these days.

I attend a few rallies around the country, and like to see the old machines that people have restored. Reviews and/or pictures of any shows I attend appear on the pages here, although it can take a while before I get round to it. The whole idea of the site is to entertain the sad souls (like me !) who have a soft spot for old PSVs, and also be a sorting office for information on the subject.

It's all for fun, so relax and have a wistful rummage through the scrapbook. If you weren't around in the 1960s (and they say that, if you were, you won't remember it !) then these pages might provide an insight into the variety of glamorous machines that could be seen on British streets at the time.

Incidentally, this site has no connection whatsoever with Classic Bus magazine, but I thoroughly, absolutely, unreservedly and totally recommend it to anyone with an interest in the subject. It is published 6 times a year, and regular readers all wish it was 12 times a year. Folk in the UK should be able to order it through their newsagents. Those offshore should contact Classic Bus Publishing Ltd., 18 Brunstane Road, Edinburgh, EH15 2QJ, Scotland. When it falls on your doorstep it's like when the delivery guy has brought you a really good pizza.

Please keep in touch, as changes are taking place here all the time, and let me know if you spot a mistake somewhere - I do try to keep things pretty accurate. I know that there are some real boffins out there, and I need you to tell me when something is inaccurate. So welcome to the site, browse around and make yourself at home.

GUIDE TO SITE CONTENTS

SURVIVING BRITISH SINGLE-DECK HALFCABS

Because of my particular interest in this area, I have compiled a list of all known classic British single-deck halfcab buses and coaches that I believe survive in the UK and Ireland. Surprisingly there are over 550, and the list is constantly updated. You can find it HERE, and I invite any passing enthusiast to point out any mistakes or updates (and they do !).

SURVIVING DOUBLE-DECKERS CONVERTED TO SINGLE DECK SERVICE VEHICLES

British double deckers that have been converted to tow-trucks, recovery vehicles, lorries and all sorts of other odd things. I've found quite a few surviving examples, but maybe you know of others. Please let me know.

SURVIVING SINGLE-DECK, AND DOUBLE-DECK HALFCABS & TROLLEYBUSES ON EXPORTED CHASSIS

British bus chassis were exported all over the world fromfrom the 1930s to 1970s, but how many survived and where are they now? The Classic Buses Website tries to find all the halfcabs and trolleybuses across the planet. Can you add to the list?

BUS RALLIES AND SHOWS

Reports of visits (by me and others) to bus rallies and transport shows, with details of vehicles present. Hopelessly biased opinions can be expected, but I hope pictures of the visiting buses make up for this. The page is usually way out of date, but does get sporadic updates, and I hope it provides some enjoyment for those who cannot visit these events.

EVENTS DIARY

Listing the many events and rallies that are scheduled each year. Make a note in your diary of a show near you, or send me details of one that I've missed.

MAIL AND NEWS PAGE

A collection of contributions from readers on all sorts of bus subjects. Photos and items come in all the time, so call in every so often to see what's going on - or send something yourself !

VINTAGE BUS TICKETS

My (sad) little page about bus tickets stirred up a surprising amount of interest. It show samples from tickets I collected all over England and Scotland from 1958 to 1962 (or thereabouts).

BRITISH BUS PRESERVATION GROUP

This site is proud to have been chosen to host the B.B.P.G. homepages. Please visit their page and see what valuable work they do in saving classic buses from the scrapman's torch - and join the Group to help them in their never-ending task.

AUSTRALIAN BUS PAGES

I've been amazed how much interest there is in classic British-built buses in Australia, and there are a lot of survivors too. So I've created several pages on the subject, using the many contributions I receive from kind enthusiasts over there. Pay a visit and see what's going on in the colonies.

NEW ZEALAND PAGES

Several correspondents have sent me pictures and news about British buses in New Zealand, so here's a place to display them.

SRI LANKAN TRANSPORT

A page about a visit by me to Sri Lanka in October 2003, with details of the buses, trains and other modes of transport that I saw there.

TRANSPORT IN INDIA

Three pages of transport pictures taken during a trip to India in October 2006.

FREE SMALL ADVERTISEMENTS

Need parts for your bus? Trying to find out what happened to that old Daimler ? Got n AEC Regal radiator grille for sale ? Trying to find a good home for your Atlantean ? Then put a free entry in the Classic Buses Small-ads Page. All comers are welcome, so visit the page, take a look and see if you can solve somebody's problems - maybe your own!

THE LINKS SECTION

Links to Classic British Bus websites only - no Patagonian trolleybuses here, and definitely nothing that mentions words like Volvo or Van Hool. But if you want to visit folk who know about Crossleys and crash gearboxes, browse through the Classic Buses Links Page.

THE CLASSIC IRISH BUSES WEBSITE

I'm delighted to host Shane Conway's Classic Irish Buses Website. Contains comprehensive cover of buses in Ireland (old and new) and pictures from visits to many other areas as well. A vast amount of information and a huge picture resource - well worth a visit.

THE CLASSIC BUSES WEBSITE PHOTO COLLECTION

To celebrate the 10th anniversary of this website, I'm delighted to announce the opening of the Classic Buses Website Photo Collection of contributed pictures, featuring classic British buses and coaches in service, or just withdrawn, or in the early days of preservation. Most of these pictures have never been published before. Enjoy !

This section is a wistful look back at some wonderful classes of vehicle that could once be seen gracing the streets of Britain (and sometimes elsewhere). Here is the present selection;