Atlantean plans run aground
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LEYLAND'S PLANS to export eight Leyland Atlanteans to New York have again been set back.
First there were delays with the airconditioning equipment, but now that the buses have been completed the American National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has refused to allow them to operate.
Both Leyland and the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority were under the impression that the Safety Administration would give the vehicles a dispensation to operate even though they did not comply with the letter of the American regulations. But now modifications to the transmission, lights, airbrakes and emergency window exit are order if trials were successful. But the situation will now be complicated by the fact that the Atlantean chassis is nearing the end of its predicted production life. It will be phased out when the B15 comes on-line next year.
Most of the air-conditioning equipment for New York is fitted in a large control compartment enclosed in the well of the central staircase. It is powered by a Perkins auxiliary diesel engine which operates at a fixed speed of either 1,250 or 1,80Orpm.