2011 – Issue 3 of 4

FREE TO MEMBERS
£1 TO NON MEMBERS
ISSUE 3 of 4 -- July 2011
In 1987, the KMB Hong Kong Regent, now at Barry Depot, posed
at the gates of the former AEC works at Southall. In this issue
John Shearman tells the story of this fascinating vehicle.
1

These two Crosville RE’s visited Barry depot in May with the Merseyside Group. (P.Hamley)
The temporary lake at the Hood Road Site during the Barry Festival of Transport held on
12 th June 2011. These four buses are currently housed at Barry Depot.
2

CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE;
Who said it never rains at the Barry Rally! This year certainly proved them wrong
because it certainly rained, the Saturday was perfect the buses were washed, fuelled
and lined up ready for the Sunday we even had a BBQ and believed that the
weathermen definitely had it wrong. However as Sunday dawned it was obvious they
had it spot on, those buses that came including one from Exeter did not stay long as
the showground became a large lake. We had to stay in the puddles though because
the Depot was doing a roaring trade, everyone seemed to be inside either under the
cover of the buses on road runs or under the Depot roof. In the end we were only
slightly down on previous years takings, which is due to those running the stall, selling
programmes and the kitchen where the hot tea and coffee seemed to be very
welcome. Thank you to those members that made the effort to attend and assist on
the day, there were some new faces but there were a lot of missing.
Prior to the rally a number of buses were MOTed including 434, PAX, 143 and the
R&W Tiger. The Swift lived upto the models reputation and failed to leave the Depot
on rally day maybe it did not like the look of the weather.
Work is progressing well on Caerphilly 32, most of the windows have been removed
in preparation for it’s repaint, all the seat frames have been removed and repainted
and the floor repaired. The upstairs ceiling panels have been prepared and the gloss is
currently being applied.
Our Aberdare UDC rare Guy LUF with Longwell Green body is now on the pit so
that it can be surveyed for its future restoration, the initial prognosis is that it is not
so bad. The main problem with the rotten floor being caused whilst the bus was
stored on grass for many years prior to our ownership. The years of towing
trolleybuses after sale from Aberdare do not seem to have resulted in any damage to
the chassis.
Merthyr Tydfil Council have confirmed sponsorship of Bus & Coach Wales which will
take place on Sunday 4 th September, however this year the event moves to the
Rhydycar Leisure Centre which is just off the A470. The location contains the same
sort of facilities as the college and we hope that the rally is as successful here as it was
at the college. Please volunteer to help, we especially need assistance with
marshalling.
Keep upto date with Group News on Facebook and on the CTPG website
Finally I would like to wish Viv a speedy recovery following his recent hospital stay.
Mike
Tel: 01443 753227
email: mikeystrad73@btinternet.com
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DEPOT VISIT;
Earlier this year Cardiff Transport Preservation Group were approached by the staff
of Craig y Parc School, Pentyrch requesting a visit to our Broad Street Depot in
Barry. The school caters for on average 56 pupils between the ages of 3 to 19 and is
part residential and part day care, providing education and support for youngsters of
varying health backgrounds. Their aim is to achieve the full potential of these pupils
and to give them a wider experience of local facilities, thus our much enjoyed visit
from them on April 11 th .
Mac. Winfield and myself
welcomed seven young
people together with their
support team both male and
female, which highlights that
our facilities have a wide
appeal. We were impressed
by their two purpose built
mini-buses which facilitated
their wheel chairs so well, if
only all public transport were
able to accept these
motorised chairs it would
widen their horizons even
further. One of the group,
Ryan Escott, is also a member of the C.T.P.G. and was celebrating his 18 th birthday on
this day, which made the visit even more special. Our visitors stayed for over an hour
thoroughly enjoying themselves, collecting souvenirs on the way and taking
refreshment before departing to the Ship Hotel, Barry for lunch. From a personal
point of view it was a very successful visit and rewarding, seeing the delight in the
faces of these young people. (Paul Gilbertson)
APRIL MEETING;
The meeting on 20 th April was well attended, to be entertained by Robert Edworthy
who brought along some of his own collection of early cine film dating from the early
1960s now transferred on to disc. The first half of the meeting was very varied,
including footage of many now long gone bus companies such as Swindon, Midland
Red, Maidstone & District and our own Red & White and Western Welsh. Also
included was a detailed viewing taken by Robert of the construction of the first
Severn Bridge (1966) and included rare shots of the Severn Estuary ferries which plied
there trade between Beachley and Aust. The second half of the evening was a review
of last years Showbus event at Duxford where we were shown a very varied selection
of some of the 500 buses/coaches which participated, including some from the 1930s.
(Paul Gilbertson)
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MAYROAD RUN;
On 18 th May we held
our first road run of
the year. With the
co-operation of Mal
Hier and the SWT
Preservation Trust,
almost 40 members
and guests visited
the Swansea Bus
Museum. Our
transport was their
fine ex. Morris Bros.
Volvo coach FTH 991V,
Setting off from County Hall (V.C.)
now restored to its
original 1981 British Coachways livery. This was much faster than our usual mode of
transport. An excellent evening!
5
JUNE ROAD RUN;
On Wednesday the
15th of June some 34
members, family and
friends assembled at the
Broad Street Depot for
an evening outing in
Peter Taylor’s
magnificently restored
Routemaster RM244.
This was previously
registered as XVS839
and following a change
Red Bus at the Red Lion (Paul Hamley)
of ownership now sports
VLT250. Departing
promptly at 19.00, we passed the Cardiff (Wales) Airport, through Rhoose & St.
Athan, the largest military airfield in Wales, before joining the route to Cowbridge via
Llandow. This was once the scene of the largest loss of life of a British civil aircraft on
the 12 th March 1950 involving 80 persons returning to Wales following the rugby
match against Ireland in Dublin. The site is marked by a roadside memorial. A too
brief stop was made for refreshment at the Red Lion in St. Nicholas before returning
to Barry in what was probably a first visit to the Vale by a Routemaster. (P.G.)

THE DAY THAT THE RAINS CAME DOWN;
On the 12 th June, the day of the 2011 Barry Festival of Transport, the heavens opened
with nearly 24 hours of incessant heavy rain. The hard standing at the Hood Road
site where the 30 or so buses would have parked was flooded to about 9 inches and
the grass car arena was also sodden. It was not surprising that only a small fraction of
the over 200 vehicles entered actually turned up and many of these hardy individuals
left after an hour or so. This was a pity as this year we had excellent press coverage
for this event, thanks to Tudor Thomas, our new Publicity Officer.
The heavy deluge was not unique to south Wales as those who watched the
waterlogged FI Canadian Grand Prix later in the day will verify. At least our buses did
not have to start from the depot following a safety car!
About ten of the depot based buses were on the road, many of which took turns in
providing free trips for the public to Barry Island and to the Rhoose Flying Club (a
new venue for this year). The Cardiff Swift again proved problematical, starting up,
but then refusing to leave the depot. After years in dry storage her big round eyes
took one look at the rain and decided to stay in the dry! Pontypridd No. 8 and the
MW coach were awaiting MOT’s, so they were placed on the depot patch along with
the Bustler minibus.
The newly re-titled Barry Tourist Railway provided a class 73 with 3 coaches running
between the Rally Site and Barry Island Station, but sadly they carried little traffic.
However, the day was not all doom and gloom as record crowds visited the depot
where the stalls and canteen were quite busy. A regular visitor again this year was the
Vale Assembly Minister, Jane Hutt and her husband. Councillor John Clifford, the
new Vale of Glamorgan Mayor and his Consort Carol Williams, paid their first visit to
the event and were impressed with the progress the CTPG had made in restoring
both the depot building and the historic buses. The Mayor had also been a bus driver
many years ago and was fascinated by the amount of memorabilia on show in the
Brinkworth Heritage Room. Our regular enthusiast visitors also spent more of their
time looking over our collection
It was thanks to our Chairman, Mike Taylor, and the hardy band of (very wet)
volunteers that the event actually took place at all. Thanks too, to the volunteer
drivers who trundled around in the rain for the benefit of our visitors. Your scribe
was one of the fortunate helpers that kept dry, manning the group stall inside the
depot.
We now look forward to the Bus & Coach Wales event on 4 th September. Surely it
can’t rain again, can it?
6

7

KOWLOON MOTOR BUS Co. (1933) Ltd. (Hong Kong)
Fleet number
Chassis type:
Engine
Wheelbase:
Body :
A165
AEC (Southall) Regent V, 2D2RA-1769
(semi-automatic, electro-pneumatic control)
AEC AV690 (11.3 litres) (wet liners)
21feet 6inches
Metal Sections Ltd. (‘MetSec’) (Oldbury)
Supplied CKD (Completely-Knocked-Down) (i.e. in kit form)
Assembled by Kowloon Motor Bus
H50/28F&R+39 (78seats + 39standees = total 117) (as built)
H51/39F&C+24 (90seats + 24standees = total 114) (as rebuilt)
34feet 3inches long (plus front bumper)
Entered service April 1966
Substantially rebuilt for one-man-operation March 1982
Withdrawn from service March 1987
Exported to / imported into UK for preservation June / July
1987
Hong Kong registration number AD 7156
UK registration number ABW 225D (age related no. for 1966)
INTRODUCTION:
In the sub-zero freezing conditions of Wednesday 8 th December 2010, ‘The Bus
Depot, Barry’ saw the arrival of what some may regard as the ultimate development
of the traditional front-engine, half-cab, two-axle, double-decker bus, in that the new
addition is a representative of the largest and longest of such buses ever built.
Traditional buses of such high capacity and length were never allowed in Britain.
Although latterly rebuilt with centre doorway and centre staircase, this bus’s
bodywork was also of traditional design as it was originally built with a rear platform
and a rear staircase. The bus has a curious interest as it combines an overall design
concept that is blatantly the traditional double-decker as once seen throughout the
British Isles, and yet it also incorporates many features which are demonstrably for an
utterly different bus operating environment.
BACKGROUND:
By the early 1960s the British Crown Colony of Hong Kong was being inundated by a
massive flow of refugees crossing into the territory from China. Vast new
resettlement estates were being built to house these people, many on hilly terrain,
and the bus companies were finding it ever more demanding and challenging to serve
these new areas of housing and associated new industrial areas.
The Kowloon Motor Bus Company (KMB) which had the bus operating monopoly on
the intensely urbanised Kowloon peninsula of Hong Kong had been loyal to Daimler
for the supply of its double-deckers since its first such buses had been introduced in
8

1949. Thus it requested Daimler to produce a CVG (Commercial Vehicle Gardner)
series chassis longer than its prevailing 30-feet maximum length double-decker bus
chassis. In the event Daimler were either unable or unwilling to do this, and so AEC
seized the opportunity of breaking into the large and ever-expanding, and lucrative,
Hong Kong bus market by offering to satisfy KMB’s requirement for an urban bus
which, at that time, would be of virtually unheard of size for a two axle vehicle.
AEC was able to take immediate advantage of their head start in the design and
manufacture of 34 feet long bus chassis frames on 2-axles as Regal III single-deckers of
that length had already been supplied to Uganda, and same length Regal V singledeckers
to other export markets. That product design could readily be adapted to
become Regent V double-deckers, specifically for KMB.
A165 in service at Star Ferry en route to Lai Chi Kok in Nov. 1973 (B.J.Rusk)
Thus it was that KMB ordered 70 ‘big’ AECs. It is believed that some or all of the
chassis were delivered in Completely-Knocked-Down (CKD) form for local assembly
by KMB. Their bodies were also supplied in kit form from the UK, the first 30 being a
British Aluminium Company (BACO) product, the other 40 being produced by Metal
Sections Ltd. (MetSec). BACO bodies were aluminium framed; MetSec bodies steel
framed. They were KMB classes AEC(a)/30 and AEC(a)/40 respectively, entering
service through 1963 and 1964.
The successful performance of these 70 huge buses soon resulted in another 40 AECs
being ordered and these entered service in 1965 as KMB class AEC(b). That was
promptly followed by a third order which called for another 100 such buses and
9

which entered service in 1965 and 1966 as KMB class AEC(c). All 140 buses of the
second and third orders had MetSec bodies, i.e. with steel frames. All 210 bodies
were similar, but not identical, with their large rear platform and rear staircase, and
with a front doorway but no front staircase. Initially the first 70 had both the rear
platform and the front doorway protected by linked sliding gates, manually worked by
a gateman. There were two roving conductors, one for each deck. With the driver,
that gave a total crew compliment of up to four! However, at some stage, the
gateman’s job was taken-over by the lower deck roving conductor.
That labour intensive system was replaced by one-conductor-operation (known by
KMB as OCO), thus reducing the crew to two. This was achieved by replacing the
gates and gateman by power-operated folding doors worked by the conductor, now
seated at a fare desk. A one-way passenger-flow system, passing the desk, was
introduced. Unlike the 70 AEC(a) class, the 140 AEC(b) and AEC(c) classes entered
service in this revised body layout as OCO buses.
In 1975 and 1978 two of the ‘big’ AECs had their bodies substantially rebuilt to
render them suitable for one-man-operation (OMO). A flat-fare with fare-box, with
neither change given nor ticket issued, was adopted in conjunction with a passengerflow
system. This involved the removal of the rear platform and the rear staircase,
for which were substituted a wide centre exit and a centre staircase. The front
entrance was repositioned and narrowed. This body design layout and operating
method proved extremely successful and so, even though it was now late in their
lives, during the period 1980 – 1982, the other 208 AECs were all rebuilt in the same
way as the two. In this form all 210 AECs were reclassified as KMB class AEC(CS),
CS indicating centre staircase.
Metal Sections Ltd., or MetSec, whose bodies were on 180 of the 210 AECs, are
names not widely known in bus preservation circles and yet, despite that widespread
oversight, the Company was one of the UK’s most prolific and important contributors
to the British bus body building industry. The low profile of the MetSec name is
explained because Metal Sections Ltd. did not produce completed bus bodies. Instead
it was a major supplier of prefabricated bus body framework parts to several of the
body builders whose names are entirely familiar. It was also a very large scale
exporter of bus body framework kits, crated for shipment overseas for local
assembly. Hence the Company’s marketing slogan “a bus in a box”. It is therefore
important that at least one example of an exported MetSec body is now preserved
back here in the UK to represent the vast number of bus bodies produced by this
major, but somewhat obscure, manufacturer.
Daimler, realising that they had lost the market, did then belatedly offer a 34-feet long
version of their CVG6* model. KMB then reverted to ordering Gardner engined
Daimlers, not necessarily because of any inherent problem with the AECs but mostly
because Gardner was the much preferred and standard engine throughout Hong
10

Kong. (* Worldwide, only KMB received 34-feet long AEC Regent V and Daimler
CVG6-34 double-deckers.)
Despite their non-standard engines (that is non-standard only in terms of Hong Kong
engine speak!), KMB’s AEC AV690 engined Regent Vs of 1963 – 1966 had a typical life
span of 21 years. All were withdrawn from service over the years 1983 – 1987. For
most of their long lives they were working extremely hard on very busy front line
routes in a tough operating environment ranging from twenty hour days, seven days a
week to severe and frequent overloading (during a period of political strife in the late
1960s these AECs often carried way in excess of 200 passengers!), some steep
gradients to tackle, and in a hot and humid climate. They were indeed most
successful buses, impressively massive; traditionally British whilst also being to
extreme export specifications !
A165 posed outside the closed AEC factory at Southall. July 1987 (J. Shearman)
However, out of necessity because of the increasing unavailability of AEC spare parts,
latterly a very small number of the AECs were partially “Daimlerised” by the
installation of certain Daimler components including back axles, and likewise a handful
were fitted with Gardner 6LX engines.
Until 1974 KMB’s buses were identified by their registration numbers. KMB did not
fleet number their buses until that year when the 210 AECs became A1 – A210, in
their strict registration number sequence.
SPECIFICALLY, A165:
This particular bus was a member of the final batch of KMB’s ‘big’ AECs which
comprised 100 vehicles, i.e. it was one of the MetSec bodied KMB class AEC(c) buses.
11

However, as explained above, like every other of the 210 AECs it was latterly rebuilt
to become reclassified as a KMB class AEC(CS) bus, and in that form it remains.
The bus was first registered on 18 th April 1966 as AD 7156 but was not fleet
numbered until 1974, becoming A165. It was a late survivor of the AECs in service,
not being withdrawn until 19 th March 1987. By that time it had been demoted to
secondary routes serving Hong Kong’s New Territories. (The final handful of KMB’s
AECs lingered on until the August.)
The letter “L” on the front dash beneath the driver’s windscreen is the depot
allocation code for KMB’s Lai Chi Kok multi-storey depot.
Upon withdrawal on 19 th March 1987 it was immediately purchased by its present
owner (the writer of this account, John Shearman) for preservation in the UK. It was
shipped on 13 th June 1987, arriving at Tilbury Docks on 11 th July after having been
through the Suez Canal and being transhipped at Rotterdam. On 18 th July it was
driven under its own power from Tilbury, through central London, posing at the
gateway to the by then erstwhile AEC factory at Southall, to the Oxford Bus Museum
at Long Hanborough where it was variously stored in the open and properly displayed
within the Museum building for some two decades.
Pictured at the Barry Festival of Transport on 12 th June 2011 (V.C.)
By 2004 the bus required repainting and some minor bodywork attention and so it
was sent to Thamesdown Transport (TT) in Swindon on 23 rd November 2004. There
it languished for more than three years as TT found itself overburdened with work.
Nonetheless it left Swindon for its return to Long Hanborough on 20 th February 2008
12

with, amongst some other rectification work done, a complete repaint, both internal
and external, and with its first ever UK MOT certificate as it had not been used on
the road at Oxford. On 22 nd May 2008 the bus was first registered in the UK being
allocated a local Oxfordshire registration number, ABW 225D, accurately age-related
to the year it first entered service, 1966.
Then, occasionally, during the three summers of 2008 – 2010, the Hong Kong bus
served the Oxford Bus Museum by working on its free bus services.
That Museum remained as A165’s home until 8 th December 2010 on which day its
seemingly ever westwards migration resumed, again driven under its own power, this
leg being Long Hanborough to Barry.
For those who wonder at the unfamiliar radiator grille, the answer is that all 210 of
the AECs did start life with standard AEC Regent V grilles. Gradually, as these
suffered damage, over the years they were replaced by the simple KMB produced
grilles of the style (there were variations) that A165 now carries. Rather unattractive,
though at least its present grille further adds to the bus looking ‘different’ !
Finally, the hard fibre-glass seats are by no means as uncomfortable as they look. In
the hot and humid, seasonally wet, climate of Hong Kong they were easily washed,
dried and kept clean and, most importantly, did not harbour vermin.
COMMENTS :
This vehicle is one of the very few preserved examples in the UK of a bus designed
and built specifically to meet the requirements of a particular export market, and as
such it is now all the more of a rarity here with not only its chassis but also its body
being of British manufacture. The substantial majority of British bus exports were of
chassis destined to receive bodies built elsewhere, although numerous British bus
bodies were also exported.
Perhaps it is also worth noting that the AEC bus from Hong Kong has importance on
the bus preservation scene because, otherwise, an entire dimension in the history of
the British bus manufacturing industry has inevitably had to be neglected, if not
entirely ignored. The British bus export business, for decades to all continents, is a
bare shadow of its past performance but it was once on a massive scale, even rivalling
the number of buses being sold domestically. Indeed, the proof of the importance of
the earlier but now lost export markets is reflected by the situation on the streets of
today’s Britain. As a direct consequence of the steady loss of the bus export markets
on which the overall production viability of all British built buses depended, not only
did the entire British bus manufacturing industry decline to its present relative
obscurity in global percentage terms, but so too now has much of the UK home
market also been lost to imports.
For further reading see also : “BUSES EXTRA”, 50 th issue. ”HONG KONG BUSES
Volume 2, KOWLOON MOTOR BUS Co. (1933) Ltd, from 1933” by Mike Davis.
13

OOPS 7;
Another unintentional open-topper! Western Welsh Atlantean 308 came to grief while
working from Cwmbran depot in August 1967. For the second time in just over a year
Cwmbran lost a double deck in this fashion. Perhaps a momentary lapse of concentration,
but TUH 308 took much longer to repair. It returned to Cwmbran in April 1968, no doubt
with a “This is a double deck” sticker in the cab.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Maybe I shouldn’t
have said “Send
the fine to head
office”
14

THE CCT AEC MATADOR DKG601 by Anthony Brewer
DKG601 holds the distinction of being the longest serving vehicle ever to operate in
the Cardiff Corporation Transport fleet. Purchased in 1948 to assist in delivery of
new trolleybuses, the AEC Matador served as a recovery vehicle throughout four
consecutive decades until its final withdrawal from service in 1986. It was the last
AEC vehicle used by CCT, having outlasted the final AEC Regent V double-deckers
(410-411DBO) that were sold for scrap in 1980 and the last AEC Swift single-decker
(Ex Driver Trainer MBO508F) donated to Rumney Technical College in 1980. Now
66 years old, the remains of this once fine vehicle still lie abandoned in woodland in
the Forest of Dean.
Military History
At Pengam in 1949 with Trolleybus 264. (M. Winfield)
DKG601 had a life in the British Army prior to purchase by Cardiff Corporation
Transport. It was new in May 1944 as chassis number 08537618, fitted with an AEC
A187 7.7 litre diesel engine and air pressure braking system from new, as part of a
Second World War Army contract number 52263 which consisted of an order for
500 “Medium Artillery Tractors” carrying Army fleet-numbers of H5470703 to
H5471202. New, as fleet-number H5470718, it had wooden lower body panels,
covered by a removable canvas top - this being the most common body construction
on Army Matadors at this time. The job of the vehicle was to carry personnel and
15

ammunition within the vehicle body itself, whilst towing the associated gun and gun
carrier. Over 10,000 similar AEC Matadors were built between 1938 and the early
1950s.
CCT History
Cardiff Corporation purchased the AEC Matador on May 13 1948 at a cost of £1005
4s 8d, subsequently registering the vehicle as DKG601. The body was initially used
in flatbed form with a straight bar tow, but an under-body winch was available for
use in recovery operations. After a period in grey livery it was repainted in the
standard Crimson Lake fleet colours applied at that time. The main duty for the
Matador between 1948 and 1955 involved the collection of newly built BUT (British
United Traction) trolleybuses from East Lancashire Coachbuilders Ltd. Blackburn
(and possibly from the associated Yorkshire Equipment Company) as well as Bruce
Coachworks at Pengam Moors, Cardiff.
In 1956 a coach built body was constructed at Roath Depot bodyshop which
included a front roof dome of the type previously fitted to the Daimler CVD6s 52-61
before their re-bodying by Longwell Green. The bodywork and machinery associated
with DKG601 was completely revised at this stage to incorporate a body mounted
Harvey Frost twin boom recovery crane. During the financial year ended 31/03/1967
the Matador and two Land-Rovers were equipped with the first two-way radio
telephones to be used by CCT and it was around this time that an illuminated towing
sign was fitted centrally to the roof dome just above the cab windows and later a
flashing amber beacon was mounted on the roof. Also around this time, CCT
arranged with Michelin for the replacement of the MoD style balloon tyres by
standard 10.00 x 20 tyres. In the mid 1970s, the Matador was repainted in the bright
yellow used on council highways vehicles and numbered 061 in the service vehicle
fleet. From around the mid 1950s the Matador was operated on trade plates 048
BO with these being positioned back and front covering the DKG 601 registration
mark.
Life at Stevensons, Uttoxeter
Sold by CCT in July 1986, just prior to deregulation of the bus industry, DKG601
was purchased by Jeff Lister (Dealer) of Bolton as part of a tender which included the
sale of Leyland National 201/202, Bristol VRT/ECW 600 and the last Cardiff Daimler
Fleetlines 485/568/570.
The following month saw DKG601 join the fleet of Stevensons of Uttoxeter in
Staffordshire as a recovery vehicle, as a stopgap measure. Based at Uttoxeter depot,
the AEC would generally be parked in the same yard as PAX466F (The ex Bedwas &
Machen PD3 now based at Barry). Jeff Lister also sold engineless ex CCT VRT/ECW
PKG600M to Stevensons as a source of spares. By 1987 DKG601 was surplus to
16

equirements at Stevensons, and the decision was made to donate the Matador to
the BaMMOT bus museum at Wythall.
At Stevenson’s Yard in 1986 (A. Brewer)
BaMMOT, Wythall
Now in preservation, DKG601 received a new age related registration number
HSU848 (I am not sure what happened to the original identity) and continued in use
as a recovery vehicle with BaMMOT. During its time at the museum the largest
vehicle towed was the twin staircase former Walsall 36 feet long Daimler Fleetline.
XDH56G was an 86 seat front entrance/rear exit Fleetline with Cummins power unit
that was unique in the UK. After towing preserved buses for many years, BaMMOT
decided to replace the Matador with a newer commercial vehicle with more up to
date safety features. As the replacement was not built as a recovery vehicle, it was
decided to remove the body mounted crane from DKG601 and fit it to the new
vehicle. The AEC engine and gearbox were removed with a view to re-fitting them in
an ex Trent S.O.S. chassis under restoration at the time.
Luther, Forest of Dean
The remains of the vehicle were sold to AEC enthusiast Luther of Gorsley (near
Newent) in the Forest of Dean in 1996, to provide spare parts for other Matador
restoration projects. In the event very little had been taken from the vehicle and the
17

ody of DKG601 still lay in woodland in Gorsley in 2010. Around 2005, DKG601
survived a severe fire, which ripped through the associated wood yard. The body
only had its paintwork scorched, but the severe heat did manage to melt the rear
tyres. Despite what DKG601 has been through, the fact is that it still exists, and
remains restorable. Although it would take a lot of hard work and dedication, the
Matador could most easily be restored to its 1948 CCT operating condition. This
AEC deserves to be saved not only in respect of its long CCT service record, but
also because it served equally to both motorbus and trolleybus fleets within its
lifetime in Cardiff.
Some “Matador Memories”
“Matador to the Rescue – all in good time!” by Gordon Mills
(Former CCT Technical Engineer who moved to Grampian in 1986)
I have an abiding memory of being “sand-bagged” into doing a job with the Matador
around about early 1974. The Leyland Nationals were new and as I recall, prior to
this the Swifts were always used for private hire jobs as they had a good turn of
speed. This capability often lead to them limping home with a cylinder head gasket
gone. A private hire order for a trip to London one Sunday came up and someone
decided to send a brand new Leyland National, after all they had no cylinder head
gasket, being fitted with the “fixed head 500” engine. Nice idea, but the bus
concerned (one of the 202-211 batch, I can’t remember which) had only been
delivered a week earlier and on the return journey on Sunday evening was pulled into
Membury Services on the M4 with alarms ringing and the “low coolant” light flashing.
Reports were made of attempts to top up with water resulting in large amounts of
water pouring out of the engine and not being able to restart it. Suffice to say, a Swift
was despatched to rescue the passengers and the stricken National was abandoned at
Membury for the night.
A young Technical Engineer arrived in his office at Roath on Monday morning to be
greeted by a phone call from the engineering office at Sloper Road, “We’re shorthanded
here and you know all about these new buses, will you go out to Membury
with the Chargehand and rescue a new National?”. Always up for a challenge, I said
“OK”. I told the Assistant Engineer what I was up to and agreeing this would be a
good experience he said “go ahead, I’ll see you tomorrow”. I made my way to Sloper
Road and noted the Chargehand had mustered the Matador and was putting his
toolbox and a selection of spares, cans of coolant etc. on board. I had equipped
myself with an all types PSV driving licence whilst at Newport Borough Transport and
it was at that time permissible to drive an HGV with a PSV licence in order to attend
a breakdown of a PSV. I had driven the Newport Matador around the yard, so was
looking forward to having a serious drive of the Cardiff machine, possibly with a bus
on the end of the twin boom crane behind. I should mention that I was wearing my
18

suit and tie, then standard fare for aspiring young managers, and apart from a raincoat
had no further protection from grease and oil. (I never did seem to learn!)
At Sloper Road Depot (Mac Winfield)
Having been fully briefed by the engineering staff I walked out to find the Chargehand
sitting in the passenger seat. Good, I get first shot behind the wheel I thought and
carried on. The Matador has the standard 7.7 litre diesel engine coupled to a four
speed crash gearbox, I quickly found my feet and after just a few “crunches” settled
down to a steady pace through the town and Eastwards to the city boundary. After a
while I ventured to ask the Chargehand when would he like to take over the driving,
suggesting a cup of tea at Aust services on the far end of the Severn Bridge. To my
dismay, he disclosed that he was afraid he held neither an HGV nor a PSV driving
licence and I would be doing all the driving, but the cup of tea was a nice idea! It was
the normal thing then for garage staff to road test buses with a car licence and only a
few had been tested to PSV or HGV standard for recovery work. I had made the
presumption that my companion was one of these.
It was a nice bright sunny day towards the end of the summer and the journey was
uneventful and the AEC engine purred along magnificently at top speed, 28 mph. I
thoroughly enjoyed the outward run and even managed a couple of gear-changes
successfully without the clutch. My mind was occupied by what we were going to find
wrong with the abandoned bus and I was imagining all sorts of things, however I was
confident that we would get home eventually with the stricken vehicle one way or
another.
19

Upon arriving at Membury, the Chargehand shot under the rear of the bus and I
thought to myself, “well he’s got the overalls on, let’s see what he can find first”. He
came back up a couple of minutes later and said he had found a really slack hose, we
topped up the coolant, started the engine and after a good check round decided there
was nothing to stop the bus driving back under its own power. We had a bite to eat
and set off back to Cardiff. The Chargehand’s parting words were, “There’s no point
in us both being back late, I’ll just shoot off”. At this point I realised I was then in for
the same long drive, without company and with the daylight starting to fade. The
monotonous drone of the engine started to annoy me and it suddenly started to get
chilly.
The Matador had a cab rebuilt in Roath works but not unlike the appearance of the
original War Department one. It had a tendency to move in relation to the chassis
parts of the vehicle and over the years had developed several cracks that let in the
wind at about knee level and also all round the foot pedals which probably originally
had gaiters round them, but now had absolutely nothing. I made a short stop on the
hard shoulder and made myself more comfortable by wrapping my coat around my
legs and tucking my 1970s flares inside my socks, the warmth of the engine started to
make the cab feel better at least whilst stationary. In a rejuvenated state I continued
on my way for the last leg of the journey.
Several hours later I arrived back at Sloper Road, tired, cold, my eardrums humming
from the noise and my hands numbed by the constant vibration. I remain in awe at
what the early HGV drivers had to put up with - longer journeys, no motorways and
few places to stop. I drove the Matador onto the fuel pumps and was so pleased
when someone said they would put it away for me. The day was quite an experience
and in the end I had to admit that this elderly vehicle had done everything that was
asked of it without fault. I resolved that I would think twice before volunteering for
another long distance recovery job. I drove the vehicle again, not very long after,
when a Daimler Fleetline drove off the road on Caerphilly Mountain, but that’s
another story.
(Thanks to Chris Taylor for additional information. Further memories of the
Matador submitted by former CCT employees will appear in a future edition. Ed.)
-----------------------------------------
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DATES FOR YOUR DIARY 2011
Sun. 7 th Aug.
Sun. 14 th Aug;
Wed. 17 th Aug;
Sun. 4 th Sept;
Wed. 21st Sept;
Wed. 19 th Oct;
Sun. 30 th Oct.
Wed. 16 th Nov;
Wed. 21 st Dec;
Glos. Steam & Vintage Rally at South Cerney
Bristol VBG Rally and Road Run at Brislington
Road Run with a Mike Walker vehicle.
Bus & Coach Wales 2011 at Merthyr Tydfil
Joint Meeting with Omnibus Society. Speaker will be
Richard Davies, Comm. Director, Stagecoach Wales
TBA
Swansea Bus Museum Open Day
‘Roads, Rails and Waters’ around Cardiff by Andrew
Wiltshire.
Quiz Night with Chris Taylor
EDITOR’S NOTE;
Our member, Rev. Patrick Coleman, spotted an incorrect caption in the April issue
and adds, “The top picture of 889AAX on page 23 was at the High Street end of
Church Street, Abertillery, and very definitely not in Ebbw Vale!” Thanks, Patrick.
Thanks also to Paul Gilbertson for reviewing events held while the editor was away.
May 1951
21

About the CTPG
The CTPG lease the former Western Welsh Depot on Broad Street, Barry from the Vale of
Glamorgan Council. The CTPG organises two vehicle rallies each year and holds a monthly
meeting on the third Wednesday of each month. Members receive a quarterly newsletter and if
they wish they can help to restore the Group’s buses, ride on them and travel to rallies.
The Group aims to preserve representative samples of the buses that ran in South East Wales and
the Valleys, as well as memorabilia and records of the operating companies.
Annual membership of the Group is £17, which runs from the date of joining. Joint membership is
also available for £25.
CTPG Committee
Chairman
Deputy Chairman
Secretary
Mike Taylor, 10 Ger Nant Ystrad Mynach, Hengoed CF82 7FE
Phone: 01443 753227
email: mikeystrad73@btinternet.com
Chris Taylor, 31 Heol Wen, Rhiwbina Cardiff CF14 6EG
Phone: 02920 693734
Gayle Alder, 16 Carter Place, Fairwater, Cardiff CF5 3NP
Treasurer Paul Hamley email: squash33@btinternet.com
Membership Secretary
Derek Perry, 11 Countess Place, Penarth CF64 3UJ
Other Non Committee Post Holders
Editor Viv Corbin email: viv.corbin@ntlworld.com
Webmaster CTPG Mac Winfield email: postmaster@ctpg.co.uk
Publicity Officer Tudor Thomas email: tudoralt@cf14.freeserve.co.uk
www.ctpg.co.uk
Published by the Cardiff Transport Preservation Group
(Registered as a Charity No. 1063157)
The opinions and views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the Group, its
Committee or the Editor. Every effort is made to give due credit for all photographs and material
used in this newsletter. Should there be any unintended breach of copyright; the Editor must be
informed to enable a correcting acknowledgement to be made.
22

A view of the depot during the 2011 Festival of Transport. (Glyn Bowen)
The static display at the Depot during the 2011 Festival of Transport. (CTPG)
23

The Routemaster leaves the depot on the June evening run. (Paul Hamley)
The group’s latest acquisition, the ex. National Welsh Olympian MUH289X (CTPG)
24