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LONDON'S LATEST
Page 128
Page 129
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DOUBLE-DECK Bus
A New Four-wheeled 49-seater Vehicle, Having Special Rapidloading Facilities and an Emergency Exit for the Upper Saloon
ODEEN traffic imposes many difficult conditions upon
the London General Omnibus Co., Ltd., the headquarters of which is at 55, Broadway, London, S.W.1. Not the least amongst these is the need for reducing to the minimum the duration of halts to pick up or set down passengers. After considerable research a new bus, known as the type ST, has been evolved. The coachwork of this double-saloon vehicle is of exceptional interest and is shown by the model illustrated, which is the first of the initial batch.
A Popular Chassis as the Basis.
Before dealing with the body it should be mentioned that the basis of the machine is the A.E.C. Regent chassis with forward control. This, of course, is a product of the Associated Equipment Co., Ltd., Windmill Lane, Southall, Middlesex. It has a six-cylindered engine with an overhead camshaft, the bore and stroke being 100 mm. and 130 ram. respectively. It develops 95 b.h.p., and all the accessories are grouped on the near side to facilitate access to them. Behind a grill is the Still-tube radiator. The transmission line includes a single-plate clutch, a four-speed gearbox with left-hand control, a two-piece propeller shaft, and an underslung-worm rear axle with semi-floating shafts. Vacuum-servo operation is used for the four-wheel brakes, and the reverse-cambered springs are aided by rebound dampers. On the bus in question 36-in. by S-in. tyres are used. For further, particulars of the specification of this chassis reference should be made to the issue of The Commercial Motor dated October 22nd, 1929.
Turning to the bodywork of the new vehicle, the 49 passengers are accommodated in the following way :-29 in the upper saloon and 20 on the loWer deck. In the upper saloon all seats are crosswise, 'nine of them accommodating two P34
passengers each, whilst there are two banks of seats for three persons apiece and one full-width scat at the rear accommodating five passengers. On the off side is de staircase, whilst the double window at the rear over the fullwidth seat is hinged at its base and can fall outward to form an emergency, exit. To operate this, a glass panel is broken, the handle thus revealed moved to either side and the window pushed open. On the upper deck there are brass rails around the top of the staircase and there are seven grab poles.
The lower saloon has eight cross-wise seats for two persons apiece, and a longitudinal one over the near-side wheelarch. Facing this seat is the staircase, situated over the offside wheel-arch. There are no grab poles or handles on the seats on this deck. The centre pillar of the front bulkhead and the side of the staircase, opposite the longitudinal seat, have mirrors fixed thereto. The staircase is a perfectly straight one ; fabric-covered oval handrails are used for the stairway and beside the well of the lower deck.
Adjustable Half-drop Windows Employed.
Turning now to features common to both decks, we find that the windows beside all lqterally placed seats are of the half-drop type; the lower portion is fixed and the upper part capable of regulation to any point, from closed to fully open, by means of a rack-and-pinion mechanism with a centrally placed control catch. Similar windows are used for the front of the upper saloon. Ventilators, of the sliding-grid type are employed at the forward end of both saloons. These can be operated only by the conductor of the bus.
The interior lighting is a particularly interesting point. The bulbs are situated behind curved, transparent panels running the full length of the bus on both sides at cant-rail level, also around the platform. These panels are 10 ins. wide and give a full but diffused light in, both saloons. The seats have light wooden framework, reinforced with metal brackets and flitch plates. The cushions and squabs are well sprung and are trimmed in a line-figured repp. The inside finish is in scratch-proof Rexine for the lining boards, etc. This material is also need for the pillars below cantrail level. Polished mouldings are used for the roof furnishing, and extra strong buff-coloured leather-cloth is employed for the kick-plates.
One of the principal points of interest about the ST-type body is the platform design. This has been schemed so as to permit a good number of people to board the bus and proceed to their seats in safety while the vehicle is gathering speed. There is no door at the rear, but the platform is wholly enclosed and the effective opening is 3 ft. 5 ins. wide by 6 ft. 4 ins. high. The whole rectangle of the platform is unobstructed and the area available for standing passengers is increased by continuing t h e platform level forward in the lower • saloon beside the i stairway. In this way the conductor can carry on his work without being troubled by standing passengers. The entrance is of the one-step type and • there is a sliding light in the off-side rear window to permit, signalling to the conductor. Illuminated destination indicators are provided in the front and rear panels of the body, whilst there is an illuminated route-number box over the entrance. A folding step is mounted at the rear of the body for the benefit of short conductors when reaching for the destination-indicator handle.
The driver's cab is fully enclosed, except for the door opening. On the left is a sliding panel, over which is a box containing a fog lamp and switch. When in use, the light is passed through the open left-hand panel and fixed on a bracket on the near-side drunhiron. The front screen is of the two-panel type with a small overlap and can be fmmd in
any required position. An electric screenwiper is installed. A small screen is provided to the off side of the main One and there is a small glass filler panel behind the door opening. To the driver's right is the switchbox and a Pyrene fire extinguisher, whilst on the bulkhead behind him is the, ignition switch. In emergency, the conductor can break the glass panel in the 'forward bulkhead and gain access to the switch.
The unladen weight is given as 5 tons II cwt 2 qrs., and the front-axle weight (laden) is 3 tons 11 cwt. 2 qrs., whilst the hind-axle weight is .quoted as 5 tons 8 cwt. During the course of a short run in the ST bus around the track at the Chiswick works several features were noted. The six-cylindered engine, gave smooth and rapid accelera„tion, whilst the silence during ” tick-over" periods was such as to permit easy conversation in a normal voice; this point is of considerable importance to the everyday passenger, particularly during long-duration traffic blocks. The gear-change was quick, the clutch stop enabling upward changes to be made without deliberation. The vacuum-servo fourwheel brakes proved to be very powerful; the assisting mechanism should do much to lighten the driver's work,