The Classic Irish Buses website

Ulsterbus 1989 - 2011

Page last updated on 2nd October 2011

Classic Irish Buses    Classic Manx Buses     Email   Photo gallery   North Midland Transport Collection    COMPLETE SITE MENU    Links    Henry’s Coastal Tours     Classic Buses Website     Morris Oxford car site

Northern Ireland menu:

Belfast Corporation   H M S Catherwood Ltd.   Citybus   Lough Swilly   NIRTB 1935 - 39   NIRTB 1940 - 48   UTA 1948 - 56   UTA 1957 - 61   UTA 1962 - 66  

U'bus 1967 - 72   U'bus 1973 - 76   U'bus 1977 - 82   U'bus 1983 - 88   U'bus 1989 - 2010

By 1989, Ulsterbus had placed close to 400 Leyland Tigers into service, but the upcoming sale of Leyland Bus to Volvo was to have an effect on future orders. From 1300 onwards, all chassis were supplied with Volvo engines, and gradually sales to other operators dwindled away to nothing, Shearings being the final British customer for the type. The final chassis of all went to Citybus, although Ulsterbus can claim the very last one to enter service, number 1500 in August 1993. By a strange co-incidence, some 66 years earlier in 1927, HMS Catherwood in Belfast had placed the very first ever Leyland Tiger into service, so Ulster based bus companies have the distinction of the first and last Leyland Tigers to enter service anywhere. Vehicles numbered from 1340 onwards were supplied with a new Alexander Q type body (apart from Wrights bodied 1408 to 1432).

Alongside these new Tigers came a small batch of secondhand examples, mostly from the above meantioned Shearings with both Van Hool and Plaxton bodies. A further example, new to the Ministry of Defence, brought the sole example of Wadham Stringer coachwork to the fleet. Breaking the N and Q type thread briefly were sixteen Alexander TE coaches in 1990, visually similar to 40 owned by Bus Eireann, but differing by being built in Mallusk and having Leyland engines, whereas the Bus Eireann ones were Scottish built with Cummins engines.

The year 2006 saw the withdrawal of the first of the Leyland Tiger buses, the coaches having been disposed of some years earlier. Included among the first withdrawals were prototype 340 (sold for preservation) and Gardner powered 370. Replacement lowfloor buses entering the Citybus fleet allowed the transfer of most of their Volvo engined Tigers to Ulsterbus for further service. Following success with the re-introduction of double deck buses in the Citybus fleet, Ulsterbus subsequently also received several batches, the first being 29 Alexander bodied Volvo B7TLs, being followed by a further 125 Wrights bodied B9TLs. New single deckers have also been bought, replacing all the N type Tigers and several of the Q type ones also, plus the 25 Wrights bodied examples.

Please note that some of the vehicles listed below (from 1989 onwards) are listed as batches, with no individual vehicle details given. These MAY be given further consideration in due course, depending on time available to research them.

1989

Summarised vehicles

904 was one of 12 ex Sheffield and District ECW bodied Leyland AN68s acquired in 1989. It was converted to opentop and fitted with a wheelchair lift in 1993, and allocated to Newcastle, the first double decker there for many years.

1990

Summarised vehicles

Seen at the ITT rally in 1986 was ex Ulsterbus 1334, which had been converted for non-PSV use by the Red Cross in Belfast.

1991

Summarised vehicles

1992

1993

Summarised vehicles

1994

Summarised vehicles

1995

Summarised vehicles

1996

Summarised vehicles

1997

Summarised vehicles

1998

1999

Summarised vehicles

2000

Summarised vehicles

2001

Summarised vehicles

  • 695 - 699 ICZ 6695 - 6699 Volvo B10M-62 - Caetano C49F new 5/01 (all w/d except 696)
  • 701 - 738 HCZ 8701 - 8735, ICZ 2736 - 2738 Scania L94UB - Wrights B43F new 3/01 to 10/01 (731 to Citybus)

    • 2002

    Summarised vehicles

    2003

    Summarised vehicles

    2004

    Summarised vehicles

    2005

    Summarised vehicles

    2006

    Summarised vehicles

    2007

    Summarised vehicles

    2008

    Summarised vehicles

    2009

    Summarised vehicles

    2010

    Summarised vehicles

    2010

    Summarised vehicles

    Classic Irish Buses    Classic Manx Buses     Email   Photo gallery   North Midland Transport Collection    COMPLETE SITE MENU    Links    Henry’s Coastal Tours     Classic Buses Website     Morris Oxford car site

    SB