I spotted two remnant North & Western Bus Lines bus stop plates back to back, outside 19 Nundah Street at Lane Cove North, for eastbound bus services in the past.
From http://sydneybusroutes.com, 532 (previously 264 and 53) used to operate along Nundah Street. I assume this route lasted until the STA's ex-North & West routes reorganisation in June 2001? Nundah Street currently only has 4 school buses service daily but in the opposite direction (westbound).
The two signs, each facing each direction. They seem to be identical.
Seeing those signs reminds me of the time not long after I started at Deanes Coaches / Clipper Tours when I was chatting with Ron Smith. He mentioned there were similar signs on the then route 54 with Barnes Coaches as the operator. So armed with a several new generic Bus Stop signs I replaced all the old ones and added the Barnes Coaches ones to the collection.
The bus he's standing in would have been going right up until takeover. I took a video of one like it 10 years later in Epping. Could be the actual unit but we'll never know.
PS: presuming it's one of the PMC Leopards. It could be one of his CC Super Vikings or of one of the two Tigers with the same body. In any case, I filmed both, the Super Vikings at Maquarie Centre as well as STA 2468 in original livery AND a Scania 14.5!!
I really need to figure out a way to upload to YouTube don't I LOL.? (Be warned: severely amateurish camera work at times LOL!!!).
He looks in high spirits for a bus proprietor going through a strike.
Nice to see one of those CCMC Albion Vikings with it's HHBC scheme. Mad exhaust they had. Only 14 years old by then, a lot younger than many buses in revenue service today.
Generally most of the top flight private operators of the past realised that operating 15-25 year old buses was not overly attractive to their passenger bases ,and more expensive in maintainence and fuel usage and made sure that their new fleet mostly operated all day shifts and the older buses just ran school runs.
Now With TFNSW controlling the services and the operators merely being contractors,plus the rostering systems employed old fleet is still employed on all day shifts.
Not attractive to the pax especially with the minimal presentation standards of some of the contract holders.
Ken's predecessor Clarrie Paull ran the oldest buses on the busiest route 234 to Woolwich ferry, taking the patronage for granted, and the newest on 95 to Chatswood where he was encouraging patronage! Great operating philosophy - until the ferry patronage dropped off down the tube. Mind you, the buses were mostly less than 15 years old. On 53, the subject of this thread, he used 1940s normal control Speedwagons - taken well for granted! They did at least practice sizing vehicles according to demand, the quieter 53 getting smaller new Bedfords when the Speedwogons were retired. I think Ken just stuck to one size fits all.
Nat wrote:Nah thats def a PMC body on a Leopard that he is standing in.
Fairly sure that is a CCMC Super Viking behind the Leopard's exhaust though.....
The twin exhaust is the GM powered 003.....
I should have known by the stepped window towards the front. Hard to tell otherwise, without comparing full pics of each bus. From memory, the Super Vikings had a dull silver surround to the windows, as can be made out on the bus behind the exhaust you mentioned.
I think you're right on all counts.
Some tantalising glimpses of bus backs. The one nearest is the CVI Leopard. The other operation Metro West Bus Lines, formerly Cumberland, would have had a Bedford VAM with the same body with interesting Perkins diesel Allison auto combination doing the 172 Eastwood -Parra Via Valley or Via Main Rd.
Brilliant shots of the late Ken Butt.
Swift wrote:Some tantalising glimpses of bus backs. The one nearest is the CVI Leopard. The other operation Metro West Bus Lines, formerly Cumberland, would have had a Bedford VAM with the same body with interesting Perkins diesel Allison auto combination doing the 172 Eastwood -Parra Via Valley or Via Main Rd.
Remember it's rego number by any chance? The only Perkins/Allison I can think of was the CCMC bodied 028 ex Meadowbank Bus Service.
Nat wrote:
Remember it's rego number by any chance? The only Perkins/Allison I can think of was the CCMC bodied 028 ex Meadowbank Bus Service.
I found a pic of a CVI Gold star bodied Bedford SB with Meadowbank Bus Service mo028 in a book on the history of Commonwealth Engineering. https://books.google.com.au/books?id=uY ... es&f=false
The bus I describe was a forward entrance VAM with CVI Capitol body. I had a pic of it somewhere but can't find it.
Thanks to the Dept of the Interior, the design work didn't go to waste and we ended up seeing them in our private fleets for years afterwards.
You can see mo028 a few pages down in the link and examples of the Capitol body I speak of, a few pages scrolled up.
HHBC had a Reliance with this body as well. http://www.busaustralia.com/forum/viewt ... 42&t=71835
Nat wrote:028 CVI can't have lasted long as 028 CCMC was purchased by MBBS in 1976.
I wonder if that's the same bus replated that I used to catch on a route from Eastwood to West Ryde via the western side backstreets of Eastwood, Denistone and West Ryde via Marsden High in the late 80s? They used to roster a bus just like that in Metro West livery on certain days then rotate it with a CC Bedford VAM manual with Perkins and AOA for NSW lotteries while it did an Eastwood to Carlingford run on the other days. Fascinating times.
North & Western Bus Lines remnants
I should have known by the stepped window towards the front. Hard to tell otherwise, without comparing full pics of each bus. From memory, the Super Vikings had a dull silver surround to the windows, as can be made out on the bus behind the exhaust you mentioned.
