PASSENGER TRAVEL NEWS.
Page 22
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The Latest Doings and Developments in the Bus and Coach World.
A LARGE-CAPACITY SALOON BUS.
Features of a 38 seater Leyland Vehicle which Embodies in its Designan
Emergency Door at the Front End of the Passenger Compartment.
rINE OF the most noteworthy de
velopments in the travel-by-road movement of recent months has been the popularity achieved by the small vehicle to carry up to about 20 passengers. Vehicles of this type, with a somewhat restricted seating capacity, are undoubtedly of considerable value in rural areas, where the traffic at most times of the day is of sparse proportions, but they can hardly be said to meet the main requirements of thickly populated areas. As a feeder to the main services of a busy industrial centre, the small saloon bus can, of course, also be remuneratively operated.
In districts where a business population has to be tfansported at definite periods of the day, the large-capacity vehicle still holds the field, however, and the single-deck vehicle, seating as many as 40 or more passengers, can usually be profitably employed throughout most of the working day.
One of those prominent British manufacturers who have had considerable experience in the production of largecapacity saloon buses is Leyland Motors, Ltd., and from their works at Leyland, Lancs., they have recently supplied to the Hants and Dorset Motor Services, Ltd., the 38-seater vehicle which is illustrated on this page.
A further batch of .machines—nine in number—of this make is to be added to the fleet of Leyland buses already owned by this enterprising company. Seven of them are to be delivered in chassis form, whilst the remaining two are being fitted with 38-seater bodies. This type of body is a modified form of the Crosville pattern, whilst the chassis deviates only from the standard S.G.9 model in that the petrol tank, which feeds the carburetter with fuel via an Autovac, is located below the rear of the frame.
One of the most interesting features of the body design is the emergency door, which is disposed at the extreme front
end of the passenger compartment on the near side. This door is normallyheld in position by bolts at the top and the bottom, and these are released by a . crank-handle fitted at the level of the window. It is necessary to move this handle through an angle of 180 degrees in order to open the door, so that there is no risk of its inadvertent operation as a result of excessive vibration. The spindle of this handle projects through the -door panels to the outside, and terminates in a short length of square section, to which can be fitted a spare handle. This is normally carried above the main entrance at the rear, from which position it can be instantaneously detached.
A further point worthy of note is that the opening of the emergency door automatically lowers a step; which is held in the vertical position when the door is closed.
The passenger compartment is divided into two sections. The seat that usually backs on to the bonnet and the driver's cab in the front portion has been omitted in the case of this body, so that exit by way of the emergency door may be quite unhampered, although an additional seat to accommodate two persons is situated on the off side.
In the rear portion of the body a seat stretches across the full width of the vehicle behind the main entrance, opposite to which a scat is arranged for the atcommotiation of two people, whilst piovision is made for 12 additional passtmgers to be carried in this section. The upholstering of the seats is carried out in .crimson leather, which offers a definite contrast to the roof painted in white.
Proper attention has been given to the subjects of lighting and ventilation, the former being attended to by a 12volt set, and the latter by three drop windows on each side, in addition to the usual vents disposed over the main window frames.
The exterior of the vehicle is painted a pleasing shade of dark green, the lining, lettering and mouldings being finished in gold and black.
The driver's cab is of the totally enclosed type, and is mounted alongside the off side of the engine ; it is entirely cut off from the main seating compartment. It is provided with a mirror on each side in order that the driver can not only be made aware of the desire of other vehicles to pass, but can also keep under close observation the kerb on the near side of the bus.