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Myer of the Year: ;alop test of skill
Page 25
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3H ERCALL in Shropshire s again the scene for the als of the UK Bus Driver of Year Competition, when drivers from a number of rators took part in a series skill testing manoeuvres, npleted observation tests I answered questions on the ;hway Code and vehicle chanics.
he Road Transport Instry Training Boardmsored event included an RTEX '79 which luded vehicles from the latgeneration of buses from of the contenders for the tish city bus market.
)ouble-decker buses iibited included the 102nd Metrobus ready for deny to London Transport, Foden NC that is in setvkiit being evaluated by r;132,t, midiary Potteries Motor iction, a Volvo B55 with xander body, in Tayside ;ional Transport colours, a !st Midlands PTE Leyland an and a Blackman Trans t East Lanes-bodied Dennis minator.
Iestair Dennis also had on play a single-deck version the Dominator, also with Lancs bodywork and due ally to enter service with Tow Corporation.
.eyland Vehicles used the dbition to show the first of the new manual gearbox version of the long-established Leyland Leopard coach. A brief demonstration drive in the coach gave the impression that the six-speed ZF gearbox was well matched to the power from the 680 engine. The coach, a Leyland demonstrator, was fitted with a Plaxton Supreme body.
DAF Bus had two MB 200 DKL coaches, both Plaxtonbodied and from Sweden, Scania Bussar brought its CR112 complete bodied city bus and a BR116 rear-engined luxury coach.
The CR112 is a complete Scania-bodied city bus built exclusively for the Nordic countries, but Scania expects to announce a chassis version suitable for British-type double-deck bodywork in the future. The BR116 coach was fitted with a well-equipped high-floor German-built Neoplan Jetliner integral body built for operations in Sweden. Equipment on the doubleglazed vehicle included electric roof hatches and a lowlevel toilet suite.
Other vehicles on display included an AEC Reliance Jetlink Green Line coach, a Willowbrook-bodied Bedford YMT, a number of preserved buses and one of the MAN "Bendibuses" now in service with South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive.
Static displays included exhibitions by Tricentrol Chassis Developments which included Telma retarders, Ferodo, again showing its retarder, and Voith Engineering which has on show its recently announced "hydrodynamic" VHBK 130 retarder.
The RTEX '79 exhibition was open two days and included a comprehensive range of exhibits. It was, however sparsely attended on the Saturday although boosted by the Driver of the Year Competition. Exhibition attendance was obviously not helped by the somewhat obscure location at the MOTEC centre.
Shropshire County emergency services also demonstrated their abilities in dealing with a major coach accident in a particularly realistic exercise. West Mercia police, Salop Ambulance Service and the Salop Fire Brigade rescued a number of "casualties" from an overturned coach which was recovered by a team of specialists from REME using air-bag recovery techniques.
National Bus Company subsidiary drivers swept the board in the Driver of the Year Competition. First place went to East Kent Road Car Company driver Jim Firman and the runner-up was Anthony Fisher of Southdown Motor Services. Third place went to S. Roberts of Midland Red.