1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140 
Sheffield plumps for dearer buses
Page 41
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
• Proposals by Sheffield's public transport group to break from the "normal procedure" of accepting the lowest tender for new buses were criticized by CIIr. John Pashley, Tory shadow chairman, at a meeting of the transport committee last week. He said that the contract being entered into for vehicle chassis each costing £307 more than the lowest tender, would involve an extra cost to the corporation of £16,000.
CIIr. Pashley made it clear that this was an unhappy precedent, despite an assurance that the extra expense could be recouped in savings on maintenance and running costs. The transport manager's report had revealed that in the first 22 weeks of this year traffic receipts had fallen by £77,000. Yet it was against this background that the committee was proposing to make extra payments.
The committee accepted the tender of Daimler Transport Vehicles Ltd. for 30 Fleetline rear-engined double-deck bus chassis.
Mr. D. E. Eyres, deputy manager and chief accountant of the public transport group, told CM on Tuesday that Sheffield's policy was in line with many undertakings which were switching to Daimler Fleetlines because of the unreliability of "another engine" used in buses which the city had purchased.
Mr. Eyres said that the stage had been reached where services were being cancelled due to failures with the other type of bus. The drop-axle employed on these was also giving trouble, and vehicles were being kept out of service for lengthy periods waiting for repairs. The Gardner engine employed in the Fleetline was very reliable, he said, and gave a more satisfactory performance in respect of miles per gallon, although its increased initial cost added to the price of the chassis.
Mr. Noel McDonald, group chief officer at Sheffield, iau had considerable experience with Daimler Fleetlines in the Coventry fleet, said Mr. Eyres. Sheffield also operated Daimler Fleetlines, though they were in the minority of the rear-engined double-deckers in the fleet, and had found them more reliable and less costly to maintain.
Last September (writes Derek Moses) Sheffield operated 199 Leyland Atlantean double-deckers and 58 Daimler Fleetlines. A further 108 Atlantean double-deckers were on order, both for the city's own fleet and the Joint Omnibus Committee fleet. In addition to the 30 Daimler Fleetlines just ordered for the city fleet, which the objection concerned, a further 23 Fleetlines have been ordered for the JOC fleet. Gardner 6LXB engines have been specified for the new Daimlers.
Rural service to close?
• Rochester and Marshall Ltd. of Hexham, Northumberland, has informed local authorities that its Hexham-Morpeth bus service might have to be closed by the end of the year, unless it received a subsidy. Castle Ward R.D.C. is urging the county council to set up an ad hoc committee to discuss the matter.