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THE SPHERE OF THE LIGHT BUS.

9th October 1923, Page 25
9th October 1923
Page 25
Page 26
Page 25, 9th October 1923 — THE SPHERE OF THE LIGHT BUS.
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The Authorities at Leeds Put Into Service a Type of -Vehicle in which Special Attention has tieen Given to Weight and Capacity.

IN A RECENT paper on "The Future

of Road Vehicles," the author, Sir John E. Thornycroft, K.B.E., laid ;tress on the fact that it was the duty of the chassis designer to strike a balance between the weight and the life of the different wearing parts of the vehicle. In the same way it may be said that the duty of the body designer is to strike a ba-lance between the weight and the carrying capacity of the vehicle. Whether it be 'a question of chassis or body -design,however, the safe transit

. the load carried has to be borne in mind, and if economy be practised to the detriment of Safety and comfort of the passengers it will defeat its own object.

We illustrate on this page a group of one-man-type buses which have recently been supplied for service in the city of Leeds, and in the design of the vehicles it can certainly be saxt that a sincere attempt has been made to follow in practice the principles already referred to, and although the weight and cost of materials have been kept below the average for this type of vehicle, the demands of safe, rapid and comfortable transport appear to have been satisfactorily fulfilled.

The chassis -which is employed for

these buses is the 30-cwt, model made by Guy Motors, Ltd., of Wolverhamp ton, and its special features include a•lengthened wheelbase of 11 ft. 6 ins.

(which is 10 ins, longer than standard), a magneto set transversely at the front end of the engine, and an Autovac system of petrol supply.

The body, as we have said, is of the one-man type, and it has a single entrance at. the forward end on the near side. As can be seen from one of our illustrations, it provides seating accommodation for 16 passengers in addition to the driver, there being four transverse seats facing forwards, each to seat two passengers, followed by two longitudinal seats which extend over the wheel-boxes, and a seat which runs across the full width of the back of the body. The chief dimensions in connectionwith the seating arrangement are clearly shown in the drawing, from which it will be seen that ample consideration has been given to the question of passengers' comfort.

The underframe, vertical pillars,' and side rails of the body are constructed of teak, whilst the ash roof sticks are reinforced with strips of steel. The side panels are of mahogany, and the corner panels on each side at the rear are of beaten aluminium which is also used for the beading on the outside of the vehicle.

On the near aide behind the passengers' entrance are four windows, whilst on the off side five lights are provided, in addtiion to a small diagonal window on each side of the windscreen. The window on the driver's right is divided horizontally, and half the lower portion is hinged in order to permit the driver

to make the necessary signals to oncoming traffic. There are also three windows

in the rear panel, so that the driver, who is, of course, seated in the passengers' compartment, by turning round, can get a clear view to the rear.

It should be mentioned that the. bodies have been built in the Kirkstall Road Works of the Leeds Corporation, and the designers have given the subject of ventilation proper consideration. To ensure that .a supply of fresh air finds its way to the body interior, six hinged glass flaps are provided, two on each side of the body, one above the driver's_ half of the screen and one above the centre window at the rear.

The space above the left half of the windscreen is used for carrying a destine1344 lion sign, and in this position it can be properly illuminated from the interior of the vehicle.

An interesting detail in the construction is the lowering of the floor level at the front end of the body, which makes it possible to use only one step and eliminates the small corner step which is often to be found on front-entrance-type bodies. The door, which is operated from the driver's seat, swings inwards, and can be opened and closed by a hinged bar conveniently disposed on the left side of the driver. The vertical pillars in the rear of the body have been so d'sposed as to permit an emergency door to be provided.

The overall length of the body is 13 ft. 4 ins., its width being 6 ft. 8 ins., and its overall height 8 ft. 6 ins. The inside height is 5 ft. 6 ins., and although this may seem insufficient., it has been purposely kept low in order to discourage strap-hanging, since overloading is not desirable in a bus of this capacity.

The weight of the complete vehicle is well under thB 2-ton limit, and this is testimony to the chassis and bodybuilder alike, and a point of great importance in making for low running costs.

A particularly good feature of the body design is that its full width is maintained throughout the whole length of the vehicle, and this feature, in addition to giving a clear entrance and exit, allows two spare wheels to be carried On the right a the driver's seat inside the body. In this position the spare wheels and tyres will be protected.

The interior finish of the body is carried out in polished mahogany, and the seat cushions and squabs are upholstered in green Wearwell fabric. The vehicles possess an extremely smart appearance, which is assisted by the Michelin detachable pressed-steel wheels._ which carry single pneumatic tyres of 880 mm. by 120 mm. at the front and twins of the same dimensions atthe rear.

Tags

Organisations: Leeds Put Into Service
Locations: Leeds

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