Single-decker wit] 'wo Deck Levels
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DRIVERS and conductors left their buses to stare, and bystanders stood with mouths agape, at the Crellin Duplex 46seater single-deck luxury coach as it passed through northern towns during "The Commercial Motor" trials which were held this week. Ministry officials, operators and other Press representatives will have an opportunity of inspecting and riding in the coach this morning when it is demonstrated in London.
This Crellin Duplex prototype body has been built by the Lines Trailer Co., Ltd., Scunthorpe, on a modified Guy Arab chassis. It is the first public-service-vehicle body to be built by that company. Conforming with the regulation overall length of 27 ft. 6 ins., and with one main gangway, the coach is virtually a singledecker. Seats are arranged in" brickwall" fashion with a central gangway and a step up or down to the seats, which are arranged in pairs on half decks.
Ample Luggage Space There is accommodation for 22 passengers in the lower compartment and 24 on the raised section. As the seats are arranged back to back, there is a generous luggage space under the seats, in addition to racks between the seat frames. Headroom is unrestricted, because the distance between the floor and the roof of the upper section is 6 ft., whilst the lower-deck passengers have 9-ft. 4-in. headroom.
We collected the coach from Holmes (Preston), Ltd., Preston, where it had been painted, and drove it to Fodens, Ltd., Sandbaeh, which concern loaned the sandbag-load for our trials. The driver of this vehicle would never suffer from claustrophobia, because there are four large Perspex panels in the cab roof and curved corner screens, giving the cab
el() an appearance of an observatory. As the cab roof forms the front curve of the body, its headroom extends to the full height of the body. The cab roof-light panels are provided to give forward visibility to the front-seat passengers in the raised deck.
When unladen the coach was lively on acceleration and without tendency to roll on corners. Liveliness for its capacity is attained by the reduction in weight over a conventional singledecker. Although ,heavier materials, alternatives to the original specification, have been used, the tare weight is under 61 tons. Subsequent bodies of this type, constructed with lightweight materials, will weigh less.
Riding stability whvri unladen was excellent, and with the sound-proofing arrangements of the body we glided along in Pullman comfort. This is no misnomer, because the seats and windows are of the same pattern as those used in the Pullman luxury rail carriages. There is a number of minor modifications to LF6 made to subsequent models which should improve passenger comfort. Time has not permitted these modifications or developments to be made to the prototype body, because it is only 14 weeks since the body construction was started, the specific intention being to demonstrate the general arrangement of the ndecker body.
For Greater Comfort
We noted that the 1 ft. 7 ins, minimum leg-room between the paired seats of the lower deck could be increased to add to the comfort of the long-distance traveller, and that the half steps between the deck levels could be wider for passenger safety and to remove the possible danger to the stockings of women passengers.
Unfounded criticism has been made that the arrangement of seating would be embarrassing for lady passengers. Photographs from passenger eye level, in the lower seats, shows that modesty screening is not required. Climbing to the upper-seat level is no more embarrassing than scaling the "staircase of a double-decker.
The Duplex gangway is 1 ft. 5 ins. wide, 3 ins, wider than that of a conventional body, but as the gangway width between seats extends to
the roof of the body, a corpulent passenger might find difficulty in passing along the gangway. This gangway arrangement will also be subject to modification.
Riding in the cOach, the passenger enjoys an unrestricted view from all seats. The 12 main windows, 5 ft. long and 2 ft. deep, afford an unlimited range of visibility without leaning forward to avoid the impedence of pillars. The half-sliding glass vents at the top of these Pullman .windows provide adequate ventilation without causing draughts.
The four passengers at the rear of the raised .section have a rearward view, the glass corner panels giving vision to the side, and we found travelling in this part of the coach to be smooth and pleasant.
Before loading with sand at the Foden works, there was 41 ins, clear ance between the rear wheels and• body, which appeared insufficient for a 3-ion load. The modified springing, however, took care of this point and the clearance was reduced by under 2 ins, when the full load was on board. Attempts to make the body rub the wheels by fast cornering failed • to show inadequate clearance.
These trials were made at speeds up to 44 m.p.h., the speed governed by the engine. The prototype chassis has a single-deck high-ratio axle of 4.7 to 1. Acceleration and braking trials, with the equivalent of a 48-passenger load, showed the coach .to have a performance comparable with a conventional singledecker of 32-seater capacity. Its liveliness was demonstrated during the cross-country run between Sandbach and Scunthorpe, which included scaling the Pennines and 'driving at a governed speed for long distances.
As most of . this journey was traversed in darkness, climbing the Pennines passed almost without notice.
There was no time wasted between Sandbach and Scunthorpe, 114 miles being covered in 3i hours, an excellent performance for a maiden trial, which could be equalled only by a single-decker. Fuel consumption rate worked out at 12.7 m.p.g.
This prototype body has already attracted interest throughout the industry, and certain vehicle manufacturers have submitted a chassis for a similar body. One of these is a Foden chassis, which, complete with the six-cylindered two-stroke engine, will give 1 ft. 2 .ins, more passenger space than the 'prototype.
It is understood that the Crellin Duplex body will be distributed by the Lines Trailer Co., Ltd. • The Falgar Motor Co., with registered offices at 24, Guildhall Street, Preston, is sole licensee.