Four Hundred!
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Four Hundred! Based on contributions by Mac Head (vehicles) and Chris Spencer (services) August 2003 sees Bus Fare reach edition 400 – no mean feat! The main BTS magazine, Trolleybus, has a tradition when it reaches such a ‘milestone’ of examining the various vehicles that have carried the fleet number in question. We looked at this for our 400th edition and found the use of fleet number 400 has turned out to be a comparative rarity within the area. However, one or two did exist! The first use of 400 occurs on Thames Valley car 400, BRX 916, a Bristol K5G/ECW L24/24R. The operator having recently come under the influence of the Tilling Group, this vehicle was amongst the first batch of Bristol deliveries, Thames Valley having previously been a customer of Leyland. However, the ECW body was almost identical to those fitted to the Leyland TD5 arrivals of the previous year. Delivered on 5th October 1939 and licensed from 1st November, it was initially allocated to Maidenhead, but was at Reading by April 1942. A significant problem with the pre-war vehicles was body frame deterioration, and the vehicle was substantially rebuilt by TV post-war and reseated to L27/24R. It remained in service at Reading until January 1956, spending its final days at Newbury. TV car 400 Bristol K5G/ECW BRX 916 with rebuilt bodywork in Station Hill during 1948. A further photo of 400, as built, can be found in Paul Lacey’ s recently released ‘History of Thames Valley 1931 – 1945’ on p113) Photo: Paul Lacey Withdrawn, its body was sold to J. Martin of Nether Wallop in May 1956, its chassis being broken up by TV the same month. Towards the end of the company’s existence, and reusing vacant fleet numbers, came Thames Va l l e y ’s next 400, BJB 883J, a Bristol RELH6G/Plaxton Panorama Elite II C51F. Delivered in April 1971, it passed to the Thames Valley & Aldershot Omnibus Company (Alder Valley) as their 59 (later 1059) in January 1972. It subsequently passed to Alder Valley 4 South in January 1986. Coincidentally, an identical vehicle, Thames Valley’s 402 (CJB 587J) carried the chassis number RELH-4-400 and, likewise, ultimately passed to Alder Valley South. Outside the immediate area of Reading, City of Oxford Motor Services contributes three vehicles. The first was an AEC Regent III, OFC 400, with a Weymann H30/26R body delivered in June 1949. It was renumbered H899 in October 1952, when the 'deckers were renumbered to show whether they were lowbridge (L101 on) or highbridge (H801 on). Its withdrawal date is not known, but it was purchased by Holder, Charlton-on-Otmoor (Oxon) in December 1961. Whilst in Charlton’s service it was mainly used on their Oxford – Charlton – Arncott – Piddington service, and also on the many works contracts they operated for the Army Ordnance Depot and schools in the Bicester area. For several years it was outstationed at Kidlington (near to one of the drivers’ houses) and was usually parked overnight in the car park of ‘The Dog’ (now ‘The Squire Bassett’) pub in Oxford Road. Andrew Dyer, MD of Stagecoach South Coast, recalls that as a schoolboy in the late 1960’s, Magdalen College School frequently hired this vehicle and quotes “I can remember it performing well with a full load to the top of Shotover Hill when we went up there cross-country running. Could you get a bus up there now – I guess the trees would be too low?” It was sold for scrap by Charlton Services in August 1969. AEC Regent III, OFC 400 is seen after it had passed from COMS to Charlton ownership Photo PMPhotography This was followed by a Daimler Fleetline TFC 400K, carrying an Alexander H43/27D N-type body, which arrived in August 1971. It passed to Ensign, Purfleet (dealer) in December 1982, moving on to Deeble, Upton Cross in January 1984. Its front end, incidentally, is noted as being ‘extensively rebuilt in January 1981, using the complete front of former Western SMT BCS 989C’. 5 We almost missed Oxford’s 500 (HUD 500W), a Bristol VRT, which was renumbered 400 in March 1995 to make way for the 5xx series Darts. This VRT was scrapped by North, Sherburn-in-Elmet, in May 1995. All three of the above vehicles were based at Oxford depot and were used on city services. The Fleetlines were notably on the 501/502 Rail Station to Blackbird Leys service (now the 5) and the 540 group of routes from Rose Hill via the centre to the Cumnor/Abingdon (now the 4 group). They also popped up in Aylesbury where COMS ran a local service. Being dual-door, they weren’t used much on country routes, but were frequently seen on weekday peak hour workings on the joint Alder Valley/COMS 5 Oxford- Reading service. These journeys used to run to Wallingford only with through passengers having to change. Around 1981 it was discovered Oxford's 13' 5" deckers would fit under the Pangbourne bridge and they started to run throughout, with Fleetlines and Bristol VRTs sharing the work until Olympians became the regular types from about 1983. Thus it seems likely that TFC 400K would have reached Wallingford and may even have got as far as Reading! Aldershot and District contribute two vehicles to our roster. The first was D400 (AOT 580), a 1936 Dennis Lance with Strachans L22/26R bodywork, which was that firm’s first diesel-engined vehicle It was fitted with a Dennis Lanova pre-heated indirect-injection engine built under licence from a German manufacturer. The experiment was not a success, and the engine and body were removed, and the chassis reconstructed with a Gardner engine. The renumbered chassis was reunited with its original body and re- registered CCG 188 in April 1937, retaining the fleet number D400 (although in those days this was known in the company the ‘Bonnet Number’, as opposed to the Company Body Number and Company Chassis number!). A new Strachans L22/26R body was fitted to the chassis in 1941, but the reason for this is unknown – was it perhaps a victim of enemy action? In those wartime days, surely the replacement of a five-year-old body could not be justified simply because it was ‘a bit dated’! A&D’s second 400 – by which time the term ‘fleet number’ was in use, was Dennis Loline III, 400 COR, delivered in October 1961 conveying a H39/29F Alexander body. Renumbered to 757 by Alder Valley in January 1972, it was withdrawn the following year, passing to Bedlington and District Motor Services, Ashington and finally withdrawn June 1976. Under A & D ownership it is believed vehicles tended to be allocated to specific routes, and 400 was garaged at Aldershot for service 15 (contrary to the evidence in the photograph!). It has not been possible to establish where this vehicle was garaged during its time with Alder Valley or whether or not it may have ventured into Reading. 6 An Aldershot and District contribution, Alexander bodied Dennis Loline III, 400 COR seen here on service 21A. The destination blind is unreadable so where might this photo, have been taken? Photo PMPhotography We have in the past couple of years twice illustrated vehicles of Houses of Watlington (in issues 382 and 395). Unapologetically we now include another – yet one more of Chris Spencer’s depot shots at Watlington. The scene is the ‘lane’part of the depot and was snapped on 2nd September 1986. The angle of the shadows suggest it was late morning and 1975 Bedford SJO 400N had recently been on the Watlington to Henley service (now of course limited to Thursdays and Saturdays only and operated by Red Rose as route 124). Alongside SJO 400N – which being locally registered may well have been new to Houses – is acquired 1976 Leopard NNF 159P. More details about either or both vehicles would be appreciated by Chris. Houses of Watlington’s depot where we see Bedford SJO 400N and Leopard NNF 159P standing between duties. Photo Chris Spencer Certainly Venture of Basingstoke never had a 400, and neither did Newbury & District. We don’t think Thames Transit did, but maybe Wilts & Dorset/Hants & Dorset had a 400, in which case it could have reached the fringes of our area in Basingstoke. Does anyone know? Or are there any other local 400s out there? 7 There have also been a handful of services that carried the number 400. To start with, there is the Oxford Park and Ride. The history of Oxford’s trail blazing Park and Ride service since its’ inception in 1978, using ex Midland Red Fleetlines, would no doubt make an interesting article in itself. Vehicles, liveries and even operators have evolved into the present provision of three routes by a single operator, conveniently for us including route 400. This is one of the two main cross-city services, running between east and west, linking as it does Thornhill with Seacourt on the Botley Road. Vehicles now operating the route are Tridents dating from 1999 in the latest version of the special livery, but in The current COMS service 400 Park&Ride order, Dennis Trident II 104 T104 DBW with Alexander ALX400 dual door bodywork. Photo: Tony Cutler the mid to late 1990s the route was sometimes operated by 1982 ECW-b o d i e d Olympians supplementing the Al e x a n d e r -bodied vehicles delivered specifically for the service. The first of these pictures show Cityline fleet liveried 206 on 10th February 1998 heading for Seacourt at Carfax, and about to turn right from High Street to follow the original route along Cornmarket Street – a manouvre of course no longer possible with the banning of buses from said street.