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GREAT YARMOUTH

26th November 1965
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Page 59, 26th November 1965 — GREAT YARMOUTH
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

goes for rear engines

BY DEREK MOSES

THE discerning bus operator today is faced with a bewildering choice of chassis and body configurations, and standardization throughout the passenger transport operating industry is a manufacturer's dream which seems to be receding rather than growing nearer. Standardization within an undertaking, however, is another matter, and most bus operators aim towards the goal of a fairly standardized fleet—based on their individual operating experiences.

With the wide variety of designs available, it is natural that this operating experience varies considerably, leading to a wide divergence of opinion amongst bus executives as to which standard to adopt. This is particularly true of the municipal bus field, where operating conditions genuinely can vary considerably from one town to another. Towns which adopt what might appear to the outsider to be unusual policies in the choice of vehicle usually have very plausible reasons for doing so when one gets down to "brass tacks ".

However, this is not intended to be a dissertation on the desirability of standardization, or the lack of it, but a study of some of the factors behind the decision of Great Yarmouth Corporation Transport to adopt rear-engined buses of the AtIantean or Fleetline type as standard throughout its fleet of doubleand single-deck buses. One of the main factors is the town's role as a popular holiday and seaside resort and its population. consequential fluctuating The "county borough of Great Yarmouth is situated at the mouth of the River Yare, Norfolk, a river which divides the town into two very distinct parts—Great Yarmouth, north and east of the river, and Gorleston-on-Sea, south and west of the river. The two parts of the town are linked by only one bridge, and an opening one at that, which presents its own problems to the transport department.

During the off-season the borough has a residential population of about 53,000, but this is augmented by such an invasion of holidaymakers at the height of the season that the population can increase to as high as 150,000.

This means that winter and summer operating conditions are very different on most of the routes. During the winter, six of the undertaking's 11 bus services are operated by one-man single-deck buses, but during the summer months crew-operated double-deckers are required on most of these routes. A further service which is double-decker operated during the daytime also goes over to one-man operation in the evenings and on Sundays during the off-season. This presents the double problem of employing the singledeckers during the summer, and finding conductors to staff the extra double-deckers on the road then.

Traditionally, Yarmouth is a fishing port, but it is also an industrial town, home of the Birds Eye frozen food, Erie Resistor and Hartmann's compressed paper factories, amongst others. These are situated north of the river in Yarmouth, which is also the site of large housing estates. Consequently the transport department is faced with consistently heavy traffic on the routes linking the centre of Yarmouth with GorIeston. Furthermore, all of these factories work round the clock, whilst a certain amount of staggering of working hours helps to spread the load so far as the transport department is concerned.

Because of the consistent traffic, the Yarmouth-Gorleston routes are ideal for large-capacity double-deckers—indeed, the conditions on these services, particularly service A, demand the use of the maximum-capacity vehicle. Great Yarmouth Corporation Transport realizes the practical advantages of the rear-engined, front-entrance double-decker for this type of duty and 13 75/77-scat examples are operated. In addition two Daimler CVG6/30 double-deckers with Gardner 6LW engines and Roe 73-seat, forward-entrance bodies are operated, making a total of 15 large-capacity buses. This, however, represents the present requirements of the undertaking for such vehicles, 65-seater double-deckers or one-man single-deckers being adequate for the remaining routes. Narrow streets, tight turns and a difficult roundabout make 30 ft. the desirable maximum overall length for these vehicles.

Thus the problem facing the undertaking is whether or not to standardize on three distinctly different types of bus—the rear-engined, maximum-capacity double-decker; a front-engined, forwardentrance, 65-seat double-decker (with a flight of steps at the entrance) and the underfloorengined single-decker (with an even greater flight of steps at the entrance, and preferably not more than 30 ft. long)—all in a fleet of not more than 70 buses. The alternative, which has been chosen by the undertaking, is to adopt one basic layout as standard: that is the rear, vertical-engined bus as already stated.

So far, all rear-engined buses have been of the now " conventional " type of layout, but three buses on order will be the first short Leyland Atlanteans to be built, whilst another three will be what are believed to be the first Atlantean single-deck buses ordered for service in this country.

Two distinct advantages are attached to the layout of this type of bus irrespective of its overall size; these are the position of the driver, where he can answer the frequent questions from strangers encountered in seaside resorts, and the lack of steps at the entrance. Great Yarmouth Transport has found that on common routes which are served by rear-engined doubledeckers and underfloor-engined single-deckers, some passengers prefer to wait when a single-decker arrives, knowing that a front-entrance double-decker with one-step entrance will soon follow.

On the maintenance side, the transverse power-pack of the rear-engined bus is also more accessible, and having all buses of one type will obviously simplify the engineer's task. The rather higher initial cost is considered justified because of these advantages.

The double-deckers on order will be 28 ft.-long and the Roe bodies will seat 65 passengers—equivalent to the latest 27 ft. front-engined double-deckers in the fleet which were built in 1961—with luggage space in place of the front nearside lower-saloon seats. On the other hand the singledeckers will be 30 ft. 6 in. long, will seat 39 passengers with room for 12 standing, and in fact will be based on the Liverpool Atlantean chassis with its extra 6 in. wheelbase. The bodies for these single-deckers are to be built by Marshalls of Cambridge and will be basically similar to the 24 buses recently supplied to Birmingham City Transport on Daimler Fleetline chassis.

However, steps are being taken to improve the rear appearance of these buses, compared with the Birmingham vehicles, and some form of side screening of the engine compartment probably will be employed. Also it is hoped to improve the rearwards visibility for the benefit of drivers when the buses are one-man operated.

During the evolution of this policy, some interesting buses have entered service with the department. The current double-decker fleet includes 24 Leyland PD2 doubledeckers with Leyland (14) and Massey (10) 56/61-seat bodies and 13 AEC Regent V double-deckers with Massey 58/61-seat bodies, built between 1949 and 1959.

All these buses are 7 ft. 6 in.-wide vehicles with synchromesh gearboxes, Leyland 0.600 and AEC 77-litre engines respectively, and of open platform, rear-entrance layout. Three Daimler CVG6 buses with forward-entrance Roe composite bodies seating 65 passengers were introduced in 1961, and whilst still only 27 ft.-long Were the first 8 ft.-wide buses • of front-engine layout to be introduced. These complete the double-deck fleet, apart from the maximum-capacity units.

Reliances For Nimbuses

In 1959, however, five Albion Nimbus single-deckers were purchased to operate on three lightly trafficked routes. These buses were fitted with attractive 31-seat bodies by Willowbrook Ltd. and were of front-entrance layout. However, they proved to be not entirely sturdy enough for the type of service on which they were employed, and it was to replace them that six special short AEC Reliances were purchased last year.

These latter buses have a wheelbase of 16 ft. 4 in., the standard for 30 ft. Reliances, but the overall length of the buses is reduced to 28 ft. and the front-entrance bodies by Pennine Coachcraft Ltd. seat 39 passengers. Only two Albions remain at the time of writing and they are due for early disposal. One of the replacement Reliances was exhibited at Earls Court last year.

One of the problems facing Great Yarmouth, during the height of the summer is that of employing one-manoperated single-deckers, ideal on some routes during the " off " season only. It was this which led the department to introduce Daimler Freeline underfloor-engined singledeckers, with very attractive dual-purpose bodies by Chas. H. Roe. Ltd. Eight of these are operated by the under taking, five delivered in 1962 and the remainder in 1964. The Freelines seat 43 passengers on luxury-type seats, and are therefore ideal for private-hire work and for the operation of town tours in the summer season when they are not required for stage service.

Last year an innovation which also found a use for the Freelines was the introduction of a limited-stop service on the Yarmouth-Gorleston Cliffs route. The service was repeated this summer and has proved very successful. Buses on the service stop at one third of the normal stops and at the main stops, and a 30-minute frequency is employed. By increasing the headway of the normal bus service on this route from 15 to 12 minutes, the need for operating " relief " buses has been obviated. The limited-stop service has also managed to keep quite good time.

Blue and Cream

Great Yarmouth's buses are painted in an attractive livery of blue and cream and a characteristic feature of the livery is the cream diamond on which the borough's coat of arms is superimposed. One of the department's Leyland PD2s has been repainted without the diamond as an experiment, however. The buses are well maintained, frequently being repainted to keep a smart appearance.

• The introduction of the town's maximum-capacity double-deckers makes an interesting study in the evolution of this design. First to arrive, in 1960, were four Atlanteans with MCW bodies, built to the all-too-familiar square pattern with cut-away rear and bustle. These were followed in 1961 by the three Daimler CVG6 double-deckers with 65-seat bodies already mentioned and another two maximum-capacity buses also on Daimler CVG6 chassis, with Roe 73-seat, forward-entrance bodies.

In 1963, Great Yarmouth reverted to rear-engined double-deckers with the introduction of four 76-seat, roebodied Daimler Fleetlines. The bodies of these buses were basically of square appearance, but an Alexander-type single wrap-round windscreen was fitted at the front and screens fitted to the engine compartment, whilst the upper saloon windows were increased in depth to enable passengers to see out.

Two Leyland Atlanteans followed in 1964, with similarly modified Roe bodies, except that the upper saloon windows reverted to the former 20 in. depth, the waistrail having been lowered in relation to the rest of the body as a standard feature on the bodybuilder's part.

Finally came three Atlanteans this year whose Roe bodies also featured wrap-round window at the front of the upper saloon, thus completing the process in the improvement of the appearance of this style of bus (apart, possibly, from the upper saloon windows, which I still feel should be deeper).

Great Yarmouth's problem of staffing buses in the summer is partly solved by employing students as part of the temporary conducting staff. As far as schedules and duplicating are concerned, the position is reviewed from week to week so that the bus services can be tailored to the fluctuating demand. The undertaking is facing a drop in traffic of about three per cent, whilst the number of cars entering the town each summer increases, thus causing severe traffic congestion at times.

Finally, one or two points which. Mr. Hanchett, general manager of the undertaking, mentioned to me in relation to the industry as a whole. He feels that the first cost of buses must be reduced, replacements must be cheap and easily obtained, and trolleybus type two-pedal control must be evolved. Mr. Hanchett is interested in the Perkins DDE engine and transmission system, but wonders if the fuel consumption would be satisfactory.

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Organisations: Earls Court

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