NEW BUS SERVICES AT ROCHDALE.
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I: Before Undertaking the Purchase of a Number of Vehicles.
The Corporation Experimenting with Two Types of Motorbus : — —i
ROCHDALE Corporation, which obtained powers last year to run motor omnibuses in the borough, and also in outside districts, subject to the consent of the various councils concerned and the Ministry of Transport, inaugurated the first of the new services on March 17th.
Out of the five routes which have been scheduled for the time being, three of them will start from the town centre, and the accompanying table and map, which show their positions
Two buses are to be used on the firstnamed rotte, but only one vehicle on each of the others. The two firstmentioned routes run through wellpopulated districts, their outer termini being on tram routes which already serve the main road between the points mentioned. That to Wardle and the service in the Littleborough area open up new ground, as also does that from Bamford, which connects the Rochdale and Bury tramway systems.
The various routes were chosen by the tramways committee after much forethought, and when the subject was brought up in the council there was some criticism as to the wisdom of the decisions reached. The explanation was, however, that certain outside districts which supported the corporation when promoting a Bill-in Parliament were promised buses, and due considera tion was, therefore, given to these areTashe.
particular services chosen for the present are only a nucleus of developments to be made at a later date. It was decided to start the Castleton service first, pending the delivery of further vehicles, and before the public service was commenced, members of the council and the tramways manager made a trial run over this route and also to and from Wardle.
Before purchasing any buses, a deputation from Rochdale visited the Commercial Motor Exhibition at Olympia last autumn, and later it was announced that orders had been placed for three Dennis 33-seater buses, and three Guy 26-seaters, the latter being intended for one-man operation. All of them will have pneumatic tyre equipment.
Two of the Guy buses have now been delivered, the chassis being the makers' 30-26 h.p. low load-line type, equipped with front-wheel brakes ; the bodies are by Messrs. Strachan and Brown. This type of bus has a front entrance with a driver-controlled door, and emergency door at the rear, and is a typical example of the tendency of the generalservice motorbus to resemble, in outward appearance, certain types of saloon coach.
These new vehicles are the forerunners of a fleet of 20 machines, and two distinct types have been chosen at the outset in order to ascertain which is considered the more suitable to meet the particular requirements of the borough.
A new garage is being built in Mellor Street, close to the tramway centre, to accommodate 20 buses, together with the necessary equipment for operating and maintaining them, and a tender for this work has been accepted.
Although the corporation's new vehicles are not the first buses to be run in Rochdale, only one company at present hold licences to run into the borough. This is Ribble Motor Services, Ltd., of Preston, who run sea
vices from Rochdale to Eden&Id and Blackbnrn, etc., and it is interesting to note that they were successful in obtaining clauses in the corporation Bill which protects their interests so far as Rochdale 'borough is concerned.
. The Littieborough tram route also connects with the bus service run by Todraorden Corporation. The authorities in the latter town have always beeit staunch supporters of the motorbus, and their service constitutes a break in the long chain of tramways across Lancashire and West Yorkshire.
Easter Tours from Carlisle.
PERCIVAL'S, LTD., of Carlisle, have prepared an elaborate progranune of motor coach tours for the forthcoming season, which embraces all the favourite outings of past seasons and a number of innovations which should appeal strongly to patrons of the open road: This enterprising Border City company have now a smart and efficient fleet of upwards of forty pneurnatic-tyred coaches and saloon buses, and, backed by long experience with the pleasure side of the road transport industry, the management is look
ing forward with optimism to the outcome of the 1920 season.
Carlisle is somewhat fortunately situated geographically from the standpoint of the arrangement of coach tours, for the celebrated English Lakeland as well as the Border country and southern parts of Scotland are within a range which permits of the operation of day and even half-day tours at reasonable rates. Moreover, these can be seen without necessitating long running periods, which, in the case of centres of population less favourably situated, are inclined to detract somewhat from the pleasure of road excur-, alone.
As in the past, Messrs. Percival opened their season over the Easter vacation with an attractive list of tours to some of the most popular venues in the neighbourhood of their headquarters. The majority of these were of the half-day variety, the only exception being a whole-day run to Windermere, the journey enabling passengers to see the beauties of no fewer than six lakes en route.
The following list of Easter holiday runs arranged by the company gives a clear indication of the pains taken by the management to offer a wide variety of tours: 'Whole-day tour :— Six Lakes Tour, via Shap. and Kendal to Windermere, 12s. 6d. Half-day Tours:— Three Lake Tour. 1.711eswater, Kes wick and Bassenthwaite, 7s. W. • tilleswater and Patterdale (including afternoon tea), 6s. 6d.
Alston, StaWard-le-Peel and Ilexham (including afternoon tea), 9s.
Allonby and Silloth, 4s, 6d.
Alston and Efartside (including tea), 7s. 6d. •
The whole-day tour started at 9-.30 a.m., and afternoon runs at L30 p.m.
A Worcester Association.
A passenger-vehicle owners' association has been formed in Worcester under the title the Worcester City and County Char-e.-banes and Bus Proprietors' Association, and a special meeting Was held one day last week. The ohjc-cts of the association are to protect the interests of its members and to ensure the. comfort and convenience of passengers who are carried on the vehicles owned by them.