Surviving Leeds city transport buses

peterg · Post by **peterg** » Sun 27 Jan, 2008 8:43 pm

I was very pleased to see the photo of the AEC Q bus because last year I bought the Corgi model. I haven't read all the previous posts on the "Limited" sign, but I believe the Limited stop system was used on routes that operated on the same routes as the trams, such that the first setting down stop was beyond the tram terminus. In Crossgates the first stop was on Austhorpe Road in front of the Co-op (just short of Church Lane). Also the photo of the booklet with the '40' bus on the front page brings back memories because '40' was the Stanks line, which for a while had its terminus at the head of Penda's Grove where I lived. It was later transferred to near the Community Centre on Penda's Way. When we heard the bus go down, we knew it was time to walk down to the end of the street to catch it on its way back to town.

buffaloskinner · Post by **buffaloskinner** » Sun 27 Jan, 2008 10:06 pm

Limited Stop buses were what later became the Fastaway Service, a speedier service because of less stops near the city centre.

chamusdarrach · Post by **chamusdarrach** » Sun 27 Jan, 2008 10:57 pm

Hi there from a new member.With regards to the first few posts in this thread, the Ex Leeds buses at the Keighley Bus Museum are in the same condition now, as they were about 15 years ago, so don't hold your breath if you are expecting to see them on the road in the near future, ( I know this because I worked on Leeds 980 at the KBMT to get it back on the road in the early 1990's, but museum management sadly decided that restoration of vehicles wasn't a high priority).Ho Hum!

Trojan · Post by **Trojan** » Sun 27 Jan, 2008 11:07 pm

roundhegian wrote: rangieowner wrote: Oh! O.K.! it's just that Yorkshire Traction buses were identical to West Yorkshire buses in all but name so i just assumed......! At the risk of being pedantic they " were not identical in all but name " . Yorkshire Traction was part of the BET ( British Electric Traction ) Group a private company which began by running trams at the end of the nineteenth century .The Halifax-based Hebble company was also part of BET as were many other companies . Such companies operated Leyland and AEC vehicles with bodies built by a number of bodybuilders but not Eastern Coachworks .Eastern Coachworks built on Bristol chassis for operators such as West Yorkshire Road Car Co., United ( based in the north-east ) which partly operated the No. 36 service from Ripon through Harrogate into Leeds and the Lincolnshire Road Car Co . These and other companies were part of the Transport Development Group ( TDG ) . Yes the Yorkshire Traction, Hebble and Yorkshire Woollen were BET companies. The Yorkshire Woollen cap badge had a wheel in a magnet presumably denoting eletric traction. However, many of the companies co-operated on the Trans Pennine Service which mainly ran from the North East to Liverpool/Manchester via Leeds Wellington Street Coach Station. These service were operated for the most part by West Yorkshire, United, Northern, North Western Lancashire United, Yorkshire Woollen and Yorkshire Tractrion.

Trojan · Post by **Trojan** » Sun 27 Jan, 2008 11:12 pm

I remember the blue LCT buses (and the blue trams for that matter) just. I also remember the West Riding's buses that ran from Kettlethorpe to Leeds via Wakefield, service no 10. They were AEC Regent with Roe bodies, but unlike most other West Riding buses they were painted red and had central entrances, I believe this was because they replaced a tram service. Also unlike other West Riding services into Leeds (e.g. from Hemsworth, Selby and Barnsley ) they had their own small bus station opposite the Central Bus Station. I think until quite recently it was Autoglass.

Bramley4woods · Post by **Bramley4woods** » Mon 28 Jan, 2008 12:49 am

geoffb wrote: memories, smoking allowed on uperdeack only, remember sign at front upstairs, spitting is forbiden, I used to get No52 from Moortown to topcliffe mill Morley and then walk to work at Tingley Gas Works or change in Leeds walk to Soverign Street and get Yorkshire WD No 3 to White Bear at Tingley The "Spitting Is Forbidden" was a hangover from the days when Tuberculosis was very popular and spitting was thought to spread it about. They didn't know much about it and thought it could be treated with daylight and open windows (Fresh Air) . Many houses on the new 1935+ council estates were designated as TB houses and had extra large opening windows.I used to get the 77 bus from Broadlea Circus to the Headrow every schoolday, and used to like to ride on the top deck as kids do. But in winter with everybody with wet mackintoshes on and smoking like chimneys it was like the descent into Hades up there. The moisture from people's breath and clothing used to condense out onto the painted bus roof and the smoke and tars etc dissolve in it and run down in brown rivulets.To be honest I don't think the Tuberculus Bacillus would have lasted 2 minutes.

Si · Post by Si » Mon 28 Jan, 2008 10:15 am

Bramley4woods wrote: geoffb wrote: memories, smoking allowed on uperdeack only, remember sign at front upstairs, spitting is forbiden, I used to get No52 from Moortown to topcliffe mill Morley and then walk to work at Tingley Gas Works or change in Leeds walk to Soverign Street and get Yorkshire WD No 3 to White Bear at Tingley The "Spitting Is Forbidden" was a hangover from the days when Tuberculosis was very popular and spitting was thought to spread it about. They didn't know much about it and thought it could be treated with daylight and open windows (Fresh Air) . Many houses on the new 1935+ council estates were designated as TB houses and had extra large opening windows.I used to get the 77 bus from Broadlea Circus to the Headrow every schoolday, and used to like to ride on the top deck as kids do. But in winter with everybody with wet mackintoshes on and smoking like chimneys it was like the descent into Hades up there. The moisture from people's breath and clothing used to condense out onto the painted bus roof and the smoke and tars etc dissolve in it and run down in brown rivulets.To be honest I don't think the Tuberculus Bacillus would have lasted 2 minutes. Bit off thread, but I got caught up in the Wilma hurricane in Cancun a couple of years ago, and had to travel by bus to the airport. A 10 hour journey in tropical heat, with 30 other people suffering from various degrees of diaorhea, no proper wash or change of clothes for 6 days - not very pleasant either!!!

Yorkshireranger · Post by **Yorkshireranger** » Mon 28 Jan, 2008 9:04 pm

Gaffer at my place was considering buying a Leeds bus a few months back, will ask him tomorrow if he is still thinking of buying it, he used to be a moderator on this site, will ask him to make a contribution.Dont use buses much these days, last time I used one it was 30p anywhere in Yorkshire.Last time I got on one, the Number 8/9 from the Butterbowl to Pudsey direction, ended up down Leeds Road in Bradford, the driver who was my mate, regularly went to a guys house most nights, just off Leeds Road, and automatically just went there, not one of the passengers complained!!!Anybody who uses the 14 bus that stops outside the Gamecock on Pudsey Road, if they were on the bus when he was driving, often had a detour up to Farnley terminus (42 & 5) where he would call an use use toilet or get a pot of tea, sometimes staying for up to half an hour, his philosophie is that there was always a bus behind him.Sadly Bob retired early.

peterg · Post by **peterg** » Mon 28 Jan, 2008 9:10 pm

I was pleased to see the photo of the AEC Q bus because I bought the Corgi model last year. Also the photo of the booklet with the '40' bus on the front page brings back memories, since it was the Stanks route. For a while, the terminus was at the head of Pend´'s Grove where I lived. Then it moved down to near the Community Centre on Penda's Way. We used to listen for the bus to go down, then we knew it was time to go down to the end of the street to catch it on its way back to town.Corgi also has a Feltham tram in red Leeds livery, with the Crossgates destination board.If I remember rightly, the "Limited" stop system was for buses operating alongside tram routes. For example, at Crossgates the first setting down stop was on Austhorpe Road, in front of the Co-op just before Church Lane.

Trojan · Post by **Trojan** » Mon 28 Jan, 2008 9:23 pm

In 1974 when Metro buses was first formed from the various local authority bus operations, my wife started work there in the personel department. Eventually it moved to Metro House in Wakefield, but intitially she was based at Sovereign Street. The various transport undertakings had their own ways of doing things and it obviously took time for them all to bed down together. The smallest of the new constituents was the Todmorden Corporation buses. Obviously they were unused to the ways of big organisations because head office had to send them a memo forbidding drivers from taking their buses home at lunchtimes!