LT works plan
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LONDON TRANSPORT will abandon demountable overhauls of its Routemaster fleet as part of a multi-million pound plan to rebuild its Aldenham bus works as a more costeffective unit.
It has agreed a package with trade unions to cut between £4m and £5m from the cost of running the existing works between June this year and March 1985, after which it plans to spend another £12m building a smaller overhaul works on vacant land occupying about a quarter of the existing site.
The rest of the site will be available for redevelopment from spring 1987, when the new works take over four separate businesses (possibly limited liability subsidiaries of London Regional Transport) handling five and four-year "Wasp" overhauls, accident repairs, seat trim and blinds, and parts manufacture.
The LRT Bill now includes powers for the organisation to sell repairs and maintenance services to outside operators, and London Buses managing director David Quarmby told CM this week that outside work would be pursued.
The "Wasp" programme has been simplified and Routemaster bodies will no longer be demounted from their running units.
Between 400 and 500 jobs will go as a result of the reorganisation, and while LT's part-time Greater London Council-appointed board. members have promised that there will be no compulsory redundancies, Dr Quarmby, with an eye to life after LRT takes over in the summer, has dissociated himself from this promise.
Aldenham will handle 90 per cent of LRT's bus overhauls.
Dr Quarmby revealed that talks are already being held with the GLC's Greater London Enterprise Board (GLEB) over the possibilities of attracting outside work for Aldenham.
He said it had already discussed Gleb's plan to take over manufacture of Ward Motors' coach and bus chassis, but said the LRT Bill did not include manufacturing powers.
Agreement for Gleb to buy Ward's designs, jigs, chassis members and a partly completed chassis from the receiver looked likely to be concluded this week.