British Bus Systems No 5 Northampton by John C Child Hard Cover

Description

RailroadTreasures
offers the following item:
British Bus Systems No 5 Northampton by John C Child Hard Cover
British Bus Systems No 5 Northampton by John C Child
Hard Cover
96 pages
CONTENTS
Introduction   4
1 Background and origins    7
2 The beginning of the motor bus era   10
3 The transition - tram to six-wheel bus14
4 A time for taking stock    22
5 Brickbats, bouquets and financial malaise25
6 A question of fuel27
7 The demise of the trams and a struggle to expand32
8 Changes of supplier35
9 Death knell for the single-decker40
10 Blackout nightmare43
11 Enter the utility bus48
12 Under new management54
13 A time of prosperity60
14 Consolidation in the 'fifties65
15 The problem 'sixties77
16 Reorganisation    86
Fleet list91
Liveries92
Pensioned-off93
Bus stops and tickets94
Destination blinds95
Acknowledgements, bibliography and photocredits96
INTRODUCTION
There is no such thing as a typical bus operator and much of the fascination of the industry lies in its variety, yet there are many common factors which have moulded the history of diverse undertakings. This story of Northampton's buses illustrates both these statements.
In many ways the sequence of events is typical. The purchase of a former company tramway system in the early years of this century was the foundation of many municipal transport departments. The initial cautious use of motor buses in 1923 to extend into areas where trams were uneconomic was also common at about that date.
Northampton has been both adventurous and conservative at different times in regard to its policy. The decision to replace some, and then all, trams so that by the end of 1934 the town had an all-bus public transport system was taken rather earlier than in most places where there had been municipal trams.
The six-wheel motor bus was decidedly fashionable in the late 'twenties and Northampton followed the trend from 1928 for its initial tram-replacement fleet, even though the pendulum had already begun to swing back to two-axle buses as the potentialities of up-to-date design was realised. The adoption of oil (diesel) engines in 1932 for the first two-axle double-deckers to be purchased put the undertaking into the ranks of the earlier users of such engines, and the petrol single-deckers bought at the same date were to be the last added to the fleet. Standardisation on preselective gearboxes from the mid-'thirties, typical of many British urban fleets, was to continue for over 30 years.
The war years brought much the same problems as elsewhere and even though Northampton's transport system came through unscathed, the effects of wartime staff and material shortages left their mark.
Northampton had a stable basis for much of its industry in the boot and shoe manufacturing business and had not suffered quite as badly as districts more dependent on heavy industry in the depression years of the late 'twenties and early 'thirties. There had been financial problems with the buses but these could at least in part be traced to the temporary extra burden of the switch from trams to buses. After the war, prosperity brought rapid expansion to the town's bus undertaking, but it also brought increased competition in the form of more cars on the road. Television was a less obvious threat to the finances of the undertaking, discouraging people from patronising cinemas in the evenings and hence reducing the much-needed revenue earned from those by travelling to and from them by bus.
As a result., Northampton's bus system reached its peak in terms of numbers of passengers carried in 1950, rather earlier than average. In consequence, the number of service miles operated and of employees began to decline within a couple of years. Even so, the attractions of highly-paid employment in other occupations, notably the booming car industry in the Coventry area only about 25 miles away, made it difficult to retain enough staff to operate the services especially in the 'sixties.
Virtually complete standardisation on the Daimler CVG6 chassis and Roe bodywork ensured efficient operation in terms of vehicle costs per mile but retention of 27ft. length and 59-seat maximum capacity with two-person vehicle crews through the 'sixties meant that operating costs per passenger carried were relatively high.
As it happened, plans for a large-scale switch to driver-only operation had barely begun to take effect before Northampton Corporation gave way, under the 1974 reorganisation of local government, to Northampton Borough Council. This volume is mainly concerned with the Corporation era, but in more recent times a spirit of co-operation with the United Counties Omnibus Co Ltd, by then part of the National Bus Company empire, has led to a greater degree of co-ordination than achieved earlier.
The enthusiast appeal of the continued operation of the last open rear platform buses to have been placed in service in Britain is balanced by the way in which the story of this undertaking illustrates on a modest scale the problems and influences encountered by the British bus industry as a whole.
Alan Townsin Series Editor
All pictures are of the actual item.  If this is a railroad item, this material is obsolete and no longer in use by the railroad.  Please email with questions. Publishers of Train Shed Cyclopedias and Stephans Railroad Directories. Large inventory of railroad books and magazines. Thank you for buying from us.
Shipping charges
Postage rates quoted are for shipments to the US only.    Ebay Global shipping charges are shown. These items are shipped to Kentucky and then ebay ships them to you. Ebay collects the shipping and customs / import fees.   For direct postage rates to these countries, send me an email.   Shipping to Canada and other countries varies by weight.
Payment options
Payment must be received within 10 days. Paypal is accepted.
Terms and conditions
All sales are final. Returns accepted if item is not as described.  Contact us first.  No warranty is stated or implied. Please e-mail us with any questions before bidding.
Thanks for looking at our items.