Bigger Buses for General Use
Page 31
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
COMPLETE satisfaction has been expressed by operators and manufacturers at this week's decision of the Minister of Transport. to permit the general use of 8-ft.-wide buses and coaches. The normal procedure for the approval of routes to be used by public service vehicles will now be followed in respect of 8-ft.-wide vehicles. Special arrangements are under consideration for London.
London Transport, with 500 8-ft.wide buses on order, already has approximately 300 in service. Some of these have been used for preliminary tests in congested parts of the city in response to Ministerial and police requirements. Further experimental operations of this nature are to be undertaken.
The Midland Red concern has a' total of 415 8-ft.-wide buses in regular service. Of these, 315 are single-deckers and 100 double-deckers, and a further 200 of both types are under construction. Mr. D. M. Sinclair, general manager, said that all new vehicles would be 8-ft. wide, and all singledeckers 30-ft. long, Commenting on the decision to permit the use of these buses, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders stated that the amended regulations sanctioned a change for which the industry had been pressing for about 16 years. The regulation would be a boon to Manufacturers in the planning of their production as the 8-ft. dimension had always been in general demand in most overseas markets.