Difficult Bus Operation Over Highland Routes
Page 48
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The System Behind the Successful Operation of a Fleet of 46 Vehicles Running Over Difficult Routes WITH headquarters at Inverness, the W Highland Transport. Co., Ltd., operates a stage-service route from that town northwards along the coast to Wick and Thurso, besides shorter routes throughout the Black Isle district: and a local service around the town of Wick. The total route mileage is 353. A number of touring routes is also operated, extending as far south as Spean Bridge and as far west as Gairloch. When it is realized that the most distant point of the undertaking,. Reny (west of Thurso), is 175 miles from Inverness, the widespread nature of the system will be appreciated.
A total of 46 passenger vehicles is in operation, the majority being Albions, of which there are 15 petrol and 18 oil-engined machines. The latest additions to the fleet are two Albion CX9 Valkyries, with Albion four cylindered direct-injection oil engines, which were placed in service at the beginning a this year. Some of the earlier Albion Valkyries were fitted with Albion Ricardo sixcylindered engines which did remarkable work, and gave a consumption equivalent to 14 m.p.g. on the difficult route north of Ilelmsdale, where heavy gradients are encountered. The total fleet mileage in 1938 was 1,248,000.
Operating as the vehicles do over 13:8
such exacting routes, maintenance problems are of particular importance and the routine adopted is, therefore, of special interest. Normally, all maintenance work is done at Inverness, but light or emergency overhauls can be carried out at ' Wick, if necessary. Sump oil is changed at 4,000-6,000 miles on the petrol units and at 2,0002,500 on the Albion oilers. Valves are ground at 6,000-8,000 miles on petrol machines, and at 24,000-27,000 on the oilers. Brake and steering tests (in view of the arduous route conditions) are carried out every 14 days or 2,000 miles, .or on a driver's report. Major engine overhauls, aS determined by oil consumption, are carried out on
both petrol and -oil engines after 120,000-125,000 miles, new piston rings being fitted at about 60,000 miles.
All body repair work is carried out at headquarters in Inverness and the policy now embraces the construction of complete bodywork for all new machines added to the fleet.
Many of our readers will recollect the extensive experiments carried out by this company with a 32-passenger bus running on producer gas, details of which have appeared in our columns. It is, therefore, interesting to learn that an order has just been placed for a new Albion Valkyrie six-cylinder chassis to be fitted with a Collin-Poulenc gas producer.