BODYWORK APPRAISAL
Page 53
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by Derek Moses THE BODY of the Bury Fleetline bus has been laid-out quite well for its function as a 41-seat plus 19 standing one-man-operated single-decker. It has a light and airy interior appearance with deep windows and a side trim in two shades of green plastics. The three pairs of seats immediately behind the exit on the nearside are too close together and their upright backsquabs make them uncomfortable. There is a space of only 8.5in. between the front of the cushion and the back of the seat in front. Otherwise the spacing and comfort of the seats is adequate.
A wide gangway is an advantage for the standing passengers, and there are ample handrails, particularly in the area of the front bench seats. The width between the cushions of the bench seats is 3ft 5in. and the gangway width between the transverse seats is 1ft I lin.
Wide entrance platform
A step of 14in. from the ground leads to a wide entrance platform, which ramps a little steeply to the pay counter alongside the driver. Handrails are provided to the left of the entrance but none to the right. The height of the counter is reasonable and adequate handrails are provided to the right of this counter. A 10in, step leads from the platform on to a gently ramped gangway.
A 3ft 1.5in. clear central exit is provided with an intermediate sensitized step which operates a warning light on the dash when a passenger is waiting to alight. The steps themselves were rather steep. All passengers are apparently intended to be righthanded, as there is a very good rail at the forward bulkhead in the exit but none at all on the rear one.
A continuous bell strip is provided on the offside cantrail. There is also a vertical bell strip on each side of the exit door.
A three-decker luggage compartment is fitted immediately behind the central-area exit, with ample room for push chairs, but only a tall passenger will be able to reach the top shelf. Forward vision is badly restricted for a passenger sitting behind this compartment and side vision from this seat is also restricted by a body pillar. Otherwise vision for passengers is excellent.
The passengers' heating system seemed adequate, but the heaters are noisy in operation. Also noisy are the air-operated doors, which can become distracting on a service with frequent stops. Another bad feature is a number of sharp edges to decency screens which could cause injury to passengers.
Generally, however, the body is well finished and in general there were no irritating body squeaks or rattles while on the test. Unfortunately, this advantage was spoiled by the continuous high-pitched whistle from the fluorescent light fittings.