2011 – Issue 4 of 4

FREE TO MEMBERS
£1 TO NON MEMBERS
ISSUE 4 0f 4; OCTOBER 2011
Cardiff’s 359 at Cosmeston Country Park (Mac Winfield)
This issue features the first part of Andrew Wiltshire’s detailed article
on Cardiff’s Bristol VRT’s. Also more reminiscences of the C.C.T.
Chairman’s
Matador by Mac Winfield and Bob
Chairman
Sparks.
1

WWOC 856, our Leyland PS1arrived back at Barry in August after over 6 years under
restoration in Scotland. Unfortunately still in an incomplete state. (Mac Winfield)
“Ready for the off” at Aberdare Bus Station on the 172 service running day in September.
Ex. Red & White U1766 and Stagecoach 20387. (Martin Bray)
2

CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE;
Important Notice
From November’s meeting until at least the AGM in January we will be meeting upstairs
at the Penarth Conservative Club in Stanwell Road, which is adjacent to the railway
station and has a bus stop outside. This change has become necessary because of the
retirement of our long term contact at Atlantic Wharf and the £60 “discounted” fee we
would have to pay each meeting to remain. I hope those that regularly attend will
continue to do so as access is better and less likely to be affected by events in Cardiff.
It was nice that the weatherman was not so accurate with his prediction for the Merthyr
Rally as he was for Barry for it proved to be a warm and bright day which helped make
the day a success. It was the first time for us at Rhydycar and the Council have
proposed that we use it again in 2012. Based on the many positive comments received
on the day and afterwards, I have agreed to this proposal. I have also requested a date a
week later for 2012 to allow us to run buses and open the Depot for the Tall Ships
event organised by the Vale Council on the first weekend in September. Thanks to
everyone who helped at Merthyr to make it a success, we managed to take nine buses
from the Depot which was our highest number to date.
Barry Festival of Transport & Depot Open Day will be on Sunday 10 th June
2012 and the Bus & Coach Wales Sunday 9 th September 2012 at Rhydycar
Leisure Centre, Merthyr Tydfil.
During the summer we successfully achieved MOT’s on a number of buses prior to our
rally in Merthyr. Pontypridd No.8 passed following a successful rear end rebuild and a
number of mechanical problems. It last ran in 2003. The Jones Cub passed an MOT
following a skim of the cylinder head a new gasket set, so far this has proved successful
with no signs of the previous overheating problems. The Swift has proved to be an on
going problematic vehicle. A number of different leaks and fuel problems have now,
hopefully, been resolved and an MOT is planned soon along with one on the National
Welsh Olympian following some remedial work. The entire CTPG collection is now in
Barry following the arrival of CUH 856 from Glasgow. 856 has been undergoing
restoration in Scotland for a number of years but due to a change of circumstances in
Scotland it has returned part finished but we hope that it will be completed at some
point soon.
On 22/23 October we will be again running a classic bus service for the Cardiff Model
Railway Club Show at UWIC Llandaf at Western Avenue.
For those of you that enjoy your internet we have a Facebook page, I try to keep this
update with photos of the happenings at Barry, the site is open to all have a look and add
your own photos we have over 140 friends at the moment.
Mike; Tel: 01443 753227 Email : mikeystrad73@btinternet.com
3

JULY ROAD RUN; by Paul Hamley
The evening of 20 July 2011 saw our 3 rd road run of the year, and for the 2 nd month
running we were using a vehicle resident at the Barry depot. The intention had been to
recreate a trip on the old N&C route as far as Neath, but problems with the planned
vehicle meant we did not have the N&C
coach of Jeff Phillips available.
Richard Johnson brought out his Bristol
MW ‘Western National’ coach at short
notice. A good load of about 30 left
County Hall about 15 minutes late via
the A48 up the Tumble, around the
Cowbridge by-pass to save time, and
then headed directly into Bridgend,
turning in the ‘new’ bus station (the
original now under a new development).
Continuing out through Laleston, we
regained the A48, but as it was now well
past 8 o clock, it was decided that Neath was not going to be a realistic destination. So
we turned left and headed down to Porthcawl. On a pleasant summers’ evening, with a
low sun in the sky, we parked up on the seafront causing much interest to the passers
by. Those in the know headed for the Lorelei (real ales), some visited local seafront
hotels (expensive), whilst others went on the beach or sat looking wistfully out to sea
(!!!). At 9 o clock with the sun going down, we returned to Cardiff via the motorway.
AUGUST ROAD RUN: by Paul Hamley.
For our final road run of the year, it’s become a tradition for Mike Walker to provide
one of his superbly restored Bristol area vehicles. This year was slightly different as the
bus was not actually his, but was nevertheless an exceptionally comfortable vehicle.
D101 GHY was the first vehicle of a
batch of Volvos, both double and single
deck, that were amongst the first new
vehicles purchased by the new
Badgerline company in 1986, and made a
change from the previous standard
Bristols and Leylands.
We travelled via Wenvoe, St Athan,
Llantwit Major along the coast road on a
very pleasant evening, and arrived at the
THREE GOLDEN CUPS at
Southerndown just after eight. The pub
has much to commend it (especially ‘Sharps Doom Bar’), and the 25 or so members
enjoyed the evening warmth, and even a walk to the clifftop, before the trip home via the
coast through Ogmore, then Ewenny and Bridgend.
4

THE BUS & COACH WALES 2011; by Paul Gilbertson.
The festival was held at a new venue in Merthyr Tydfil this year, namely the Rhydycar
Leisure Centre, on the first Sunday in September. As well as buses & coaches, the usual
array of classic cars and commercial vehicles adorned the event. The weather behaved
impeccably for most of the day and the new venue was well received by members and
enthusiasts alike and also brought families out in their droves.
On the bus & coach front the Barry Depot supplied some eight vehicles and as always
newly restored vehicles continue to appear.
The ex. WWOC Renown of Tony Jenkins with the ex. N&C Reliance of Jeff Phillips. (V.C.)
This year the ex Pontypridd Urban District Council No. 8, AEC Regent V double decker
UTG 313G, made the festival, superbly restored by CTPG members. It was also pleasing
to welcome John Shearing and his ex Kowloon Motor Bus Co. AEC Regent V, ABW
225D which carries up to 114 passengers.
Two former N & C coaches made an appearance for the first time together for many
years, following extensive maintenance. Both these coaches were AEC Reliances of the
1960s. WWN 191 entered by the Swansea Group, has a Harrington Cavalier body and
PTX 830F, entered by Jeff Phillips, a Plaxton body which saw service with Western
Welsh at the Barry Depot following the demise of the N & C company in 1970.
The furthest travelled bus was a former Red & White Bristol MW, JAX 117E, owned by
David Bateman of Chelmsford, that was based in its working life at the Gadlys Road
5

Depot, Aberdare. As well as the vehicles on display, the general public were treated to
tours of Merthyr, Brecon Mountain Railway Centre and the Rhymney Brewery at
Dowlais. As usual long queues persisted all day for these popular trips.
Once again, I would like to offer a big thank-you to all our sponsors too numerous to
mention by name and to all the groups members who gave freely of their time to make
the event a great success.
---------------------------------------------
172 SERVICE RE-VISITED; by Mac Winfield
With the weatherman not promising much in the way of sunshine, we set out as
advertised from Barry Depot at 0930 on Saturday 10 th September. A good crowd had
gathered for the trip in David & Sue Bateman's fine, former Red & White Bristol MW
U1766, JAX117E. At Cardiff, the destination blind was showing “175 Aberdare via
Pontypridd”. Alan Jones (late of National Welsh, Aberdare Depot) drove on the first leg
of our journey from Barry to Bridgend via Cardiff, Aberdare and Tonypandy.
Conditions remained a
little overcast but dry at
least, on the leg to
Aberdare. It wasn't long
before we were passing
through such towns as
Abercynon, passing
under its 10' 9" railway
bridge and negotiating
the narrow one-way
system, then on toward
Mountain Ash and
Abercwmboi (now
completely pollution
free) before entering
Aberdare, one of the
most pleasant and
vibrant Welsh valley
towns.
A long lunch stop was
David & Sue Bateman at Barry with U1766 (P.Hamley) taken with most of our
party visiting the local
"Wetherspoons" for a drink and a bite to eat. Your web-master and David stayed
behind to fix a throttle operating problem that had caused some difficulty on our
outward journey. We found that a throttle stop screw was not reaching its intended
stop point causing the mechanism to jam, once found this was soon rectified and gave no
6

further trouble. Our bus caused much interest among the Aberdare Stagecoach bus
crews and the locals alike, a number asking questions about the bus and reminiscing over
past times.
We were now ready to set out on the mammoth 172 route from Aberdare to
Porthcawl. Alan had spoken to the waiting service driver and agreement was made for
him to clear the road for us over the mountain to Maerdy.
We stayed in fairly close formation with Stagecoach 20387 (R787 DHB), a 13 year old
Volvo B10 with Alexander bodywork, all the way to Porthcawl sometimes with our 45
year old bus leading, though we stopped for several photo calls on route.
Rain came down almost to order over the mountains in typical Welsh fashion, but we
were not deterred. Now the engine was running well and we soon were passing
Ferndale, Penrhys, Tonypandy, Penygraig and Gilfach Goch before dropping down into
Blackmill heading for Aberkenfig before arriving at Bridgend's new bus station. There a
crew change was made with Wayne Lewis taking over the controls. The sun was now
shining for our trip through Laleston to Porthcawl, where another short break was
taken. Once again re-united with the Stagecoach service bus, a photo opportunity was
taken before our departure for Barry Depot via the sea front and A48.
I'm sure I can speak for all who took part when I say it was one of our best local trips of
the year and we thank David and Sue for the opportunity they afforded us to travel on
their remarkable MW. We certainly hope they enjoyed the day as much as we did and
will visit us again next season.
--------------------------------------------
SEPTEMBER MEETING;
Over 30 attended the joint annual meeting with the Omnibus Society. The talk was
given by Richard Davies, the Commercial Manager of Stagecoach in South Wales.
Mr. Davies told of his background in consultancy at both London and Hong Kong. When
in 1992 he was seconded as Planning Manager to the main bus operator on the island,
China Motor Bus, they operated 1006 buses. Leaving CMB in 1998, Mr. Davies joined
the fledgling New World First Bus Co. as Assistant to the M.D. It was interesting to
learn that 90% of the population of Hong Kong use public transport.
Mr. Davies later returned to the U.K. and joined Stagecoach in South Wales. The
company has depots at Aberdare, Blackwood, Brynmawr, Merthyr, Porth and an
outstation at Brecon. Currently the company has 365 buses (only 3 d.d.) and 713
drivers. His talk concluded by recalling the logistical nightmare of providing 140 double
deck buses for the park & ride at the 2010 Ryder Cup at Newport. Teamwork made
possible the procurement of these buses from every Stagecoach company in the U.K.
--------------------------------------------
7

SOME MORE MATADOR MEMORIES:
“My memories of the Cardiff Matador” by Bob Sparks
(Fitter at Sloper Road Depot 1980-1996).
During the heavy snow of the early 1980s, the Matador was in constant use by the
service fitters and garage staff, assisting and recovering stranded buses all over the city.
Along with our Land Rover, these two vehicles proved their worth in the adverse
conditions with their 4 wheel drive and low ratio capability. It was used on rare occasions
to recover a bus that the Leyland Chieftain (our roving repair vehicle) could not cope
with, or towing buses around the depot, Due to the age of this vehicle, the occasional
mechanical breakdown could not be ruled out.
One evening the service fitter found that the air braking system was not building up
pressure, on closer inspection he found that the compressor which was attached and run
off the gearbox had broken away from the main casing rendering it unserviceable.
The old girl was put on the pit and I and another fitter had a closer inspection of the
damage and we could see that the main gearbox casing was beyond a temporary repair
and would have to be completely dismantled. Even then, we were not sure if it could be
repaired. A decision was made to try and source another complete gearbox to get the
much needed old girl back in operation.
8

Luckily Newport Transport had a redundant Matador of their own at their Corporation
Rd. Depot and arrangements were quickly made to remove the gearbox and fit it in ours,
though, more easily said than done.
Bearing in mind the snow was still causing major problems, with most roads still difficult
to drive on, never the less myself and two other members of the garage staff were
dispatched to Newport with tools, ropes, jacks and shovels which we loaded onto a
spare "F shed” (Cardiff Bus parlance for one of the early Daimler Fleetlines, 474-489 or
490-505, the latter also known to Sloper Rd crews as “Roath Sheds”) as it was all that
was available and so we proceeded up to Newport.
What greeted us when we
arrived was a bit daunting, the
old Matador was stuck down
the side of a building with spare
bus parts all around it and
wedged in by a scrap single
decker and if I recall correctly,
a preserved Western Welsh
Renown, plus of course, all
covered in about a foot of
snow. We got to work
clearing a path to the vehicle,
and trying to access the said
part was not an easy task,
Undaunted we shoveled our
way in like some polar
explorers and after a couple of
hours of dismantling and many
hot cups of tea, the gearbox
emerged from where it had
languished for many years.
We managed to drag the
gearbox past the obstructions
to load it onto the platform of
our Fleetline for the return journey to Sloper Road, where after some checking and
cleaning, the replacement box was fitted into the old girl. Away she went, back into
service. I believe some months later it was decided to purchase the whole Matador from
Newport and it was towed to Roath depot where it was broken up for spares. I must
say I was very fond of our Matador and was one of a small group who could drive this
beast and used it several times in my career recovering vehicles for Cardiff Bus.
9

“My Matador Memories” by Mac Winfield (CCT 1973-78 & 1983-2010)
My first encounter with the Cardiff Matador was on the evening of 20 th February 1962. My
friend Richard and myself heard on the Ely grape vine (from two other kids) that a bus had
just crashed at the bottom of Archer Road and, being quite close, we immediately set off at
top speed to investigate. On our arrival about two or three minutes later we were
intrigued to see a Cardiff Bristol K type number 119 astride two front gardens of the
houses on the north side of the junction with Plymouthwood Road.
The bus was balanced precariously with its nearside wheels in the gardens and the off side
ones on the pavement, the whole vehicle leaning dangerously toward the road. As far as I
can remember there were no police cars in attendance and Panda Cars were still six years
away. From what we could gather, the driver had swerved to avoid a child who had run
out into the path of the bus.
The Matador with training bus No. 78 on tow. c. 1966.
No red tape, no cones, no radios, no flashing lights and no crowd control of any sort, in
1962. Although the bus had mounted the kerb, garden walls and front gardens, damage
seemed slight, (though it was a Bristol, so pretty indestructible) what damage could be
seen was confined to the radiator, drivers windscreen and roof dome. On its visit to the
gardens it up-rooted and totally destroyed a concrete lamp column but not before the
lamp’s lantern made contact with 119’s roof.
10

Enter the Matador: It wasn’t long before we heard a distant growl, something big and red
was climbing Plymouthwood Road hill, slowly coming into view. Covered in a very dark
shade of crimson lake and unlike the buses it carried no cream relief, it seemed to us to
be a huge, but undoubtedly AEC, breakdown truck.
After assessing the damage and laying down some large pieces of wood, which looked a
bit like railway sleepers, the crew of the Matador set about retrieving the bus. The winch
wire was connected to the back of 119 and all the gathered kids were told to stand clear.
With a driver now in the cab of 119 and chocks under the wheels of the Matador the
recovery began. The wire rope tightened as the revs rose and 119 began to move, the
bus wobbled as its wheels climbed over the wooden planks but was very gently pulled
clear revealing crushed garden walls and a fragmented lamp column laying where it fallen
on the pavement, like a vanquished protagonist in some sort of medieval contest. The bus
was quickly examined by the breakdown crew before being hitched up to the now repositioned
Matador for a suspended tow to the depot.
The Matador at Castle Street c.1964. Note the pile of rubbish (It’s a Triumph Herald 12/50)
The above was my first encounter with the Matador and little did I know there would be a
much more personal encounter some 16 years later when it was called upon to rescue
open-topper 434 from Castle Coch on Easter Monday 1978. Without going into too
much detail, 434 became stuck in the soft verge of the steeply graded entrance road to
the Castle. The front nearside wheel became well and truly embedded and with the
11

offside rear wheels almost clear of the road there was no way any traction could be
obtained. One embarrassing phone call later the service fitter was summoned, about half
an hour later the Leyland Chieftain (call sign “KILO”) arrived. The bus station inspector
also turned up in one of the Commer vans and I’m glad to say, promptly also got stuck
(lucky for me I thought how will he explain this). The Chieftain was unable to tow the bus
out due in the main to insufficient traction, though it did manage to release the inspectors
van, ah! A call was then put through from the Chieftain’s radio, “KILO to CARTOW
BASE we need the Matador.” “ROGER KILO” was the response.
Two hours later (well, it was Easter Monday) that distant growl was heard again. The
now yellow Matador fitted with a 2-way radio, cab mounted “Towing” sign and flashing
amber light was climbing Castle Coch hill. Jimmy Knowles our resident “Cheerful
Cockney” service fitter had arrived! With 20 years of Army towing experience and an
unending supply of Anglo-Saxon expletives he was sure to do the job.
Jimmy took the Matador carefully past the bus and parked up about 30mtrs beyond, then
after chocking all his road wheels wound off the wire rope from the rear winch, after
connecting to the front axle of 434 he was ready for the big pull, with the Matador in
winch mode and engine revving the wire rope took the strain all our attention was on the
bus wondering when it would move, looking up the road to see if all was OK. Shock
horror! the Matador was on its way down the hill being hauled in by the winch all wheels
still locked and skidding along the tarmac - chocks an’all.
“Oh…****” said Jimmy, “this isn’t going to work. There’s only one way out of here and
that’s the way it went in.” Easier said than done! We had to wait until 6pm, (having got
stuck at around 11am) this being due to the volume of visitor traffic at the Castle. Once
we managed to get the Matador behind the bus and facing the right direction we were in
business again with the wire rope now around the rear axle. I was asked (I say asked) to
get in the cab. I think they thought it might topple over on its way out as it was leaning
heavily. Thunderous revs from the Matador saw 434 climb out of the ditch with me
hanging on to the steering wheel with as much left-hand down as I could muster and feet
firmly placed on the near-side cab window frame due to the angle of the bus. A slow
drive back to the depot via Northern Ave and Manor Way in the shadow of the
Matador driven by Jimmy, with lumps of mud flying off the wheels in all directions we
entered Sloper Rd Depot greeted with a cheer from the night staff at 7pm then
someone shouted, “Stick it on 18 road”. The Matador had earned its keep once more.
(Many thanks to Glyn and Mac for the photographs and for encouraging Gordon, Mac and Bob
to share their reminiscences of the old Matador. Another Cardiff recovery vehicle remembered
was NUT 344W the ERF “B Series” with Gardner engine. This was new in 1/81 as a tractor
unit in Leicestershire and purchased 1/86 by CCT and converted to recovery truck by West-Mid
Trucks at West Bromwich. It entered service 10/86. I understand this is still owned by Cardiff
Bus, but not in use. Ed.)
---------------------------------------------
12

CARDIFF’S BUSES by Andrew Wiltshire;
The Series 3 Bristol VRTs
Fleet numbers: 301 to 397
Registration number: SWO 301-326S
WTG 327-381T
CTX 382-397V
Chassis type:
Bristol VRT/SL3/6LXB
Engine type:
Gardner 6LXB 10.45 litre
180bhp @1850rpm
Gearbox:
Self Changing gears G2 5 speed with
CAV511 automatic transmission controllers
Wheelbase:
16ft 2in
Brakes:
Air (dual line split-system)
Suspension:
Semi-elliptic leaf-springs
Body manufacturer: Willowbrook, Loughborough (301-326)
Alexander, Falkirk (327-397)
Seating layout: H43/31F (301-326)
H44/31F (327 to 358,361 to 397)
CO44/31F (359/60)
Overall height:
14ft 6in
Unladen weight:
9573kg
Years built: 1977 to 1980
Depot allocation as new: Sloper Road: 306-26
Roath: 301-305 (308-312 from 6/78)
Dates of withdrawal: 1988 to 1999
The original Bristol VRT chassis was introduced to service in 1968 with much haste, and
with this came many teething problems. The series 2 version introduced in 1970
provided a solution to many of these original faults. The Series 3 variation on the other
hand was subject to much research and development work before its launch. A
prototype was built in November 1973 which was bodied by ECW and eventually
entered service with NBC subsidiary Western National in 1974. This bus had the
Leyland 510 engine of 170bhp which was now offered as an alternative to the Gardner
6LX. A second prototype followed with the Gardner 6LXB engine and put to work with
Northern General. A dozen pre-production buses were built with Leyland 510 engines
and all entered service with NBC fleets in 1975. The Leyland 501 was the engine actually
used in all production chassis. However, most Series 3 VRTs were built with the
Gardner 6LXB engine.
Besides engine options the chassis was also offered with fully-automatic transmission.
The engine compartment was a fully enclosed affair with no external grills. Engine
ventilation was achieved as follows. A fan would draw air in through a grill mounted on
the offside rear between decks. Warm air would then leave the engine compartment via
13

a rear corner mounted grill also between decks but on the nearside. The Series 3 was to
be the final and most successful version of the chassis. After 13 years production of the
Bristol VRT was to cease in 1981. Nearly three quarters of all VRTs built were Series 3
versions. Most had ECW bodies and were destined for National Bus Company fleets.
East Lancs and Northern Counties (NCME) built bodies on early VRTs as well as Series
3 versions. MCW only built bodies on Series 2 version whereas Alexander and
Willowbrook built only on Series 3 chassis. Alexander built 132 and Willowbrook
completed 83. Of the 3052 series 3 chassis built, all but 51 were the shorter VRT/SL3
variant.
1974 saw Cardiff Corporation place its long awaited series 2 Bristol VRTs into service
after conversion to fully-automatic transmission. They settled down to work in the
Capital on a variety of routes. The next new buses would be a fleet of Leyland National
single deckers, which would eventually see off the AEC Swifts. A large number of new
double-deckers would still be needed to complete the conversion of all services to one
man operation by the end of the decade.
No. 308 at Central Bus Station on 10/4/78.
(A. Wiltshire)
The following double deckers would be required:
1976/77 (26); 1977/78 (34) 1978/79 (23); 1979/80 (31);
This made a total of 114 which was referred to as ‘26 plus 88’. Just prior to this Cardiff
looked at a number of models including the MCW Metropolitan and a Northern General
Bristol VRT in 1974. In February 1975 tenders were received from Bristol Commercial
14

Vehicles and Walter Alexander for the supply of 26 chassis at £12.125 each and 26
bodies at £8970 each. These would be required for delivery before 31 March 1976.
At this point both were given the option to supply a further 88 vehicles. The Policy
(Finance) Committee approved the tender for 26 on March 10 th but not for the other 88.
On 3 October 1975 British Leyland (BCV) announced that they were increasing the
price of the 26 chassis. The total cost of the 26 vehicles had now risen from £548,470 to
£601,596. At the same meeting it was requested that the proposal for 34 vehicles for
1977/78 be confirmed with Leyland (BCV) and Alexander, and that delivery be brought
forward to be no later than 31 December 1977. This was because the 50% Bus Grant
was finishing at that time.
Not much happened then until it was announced at a meeting on 5 November 1976 that
Walter Alexander would be unable to meet delivery dates for the first 26 VRTs. These
would now be bodied by Willowbrook International of Loughborough at a cost of
£13,890 each. The buses would be delivered within eight weeks of Willowbrook
receiving the chassis. The first chassis was delivered to Willowbrook in January 1977 and
delivery was expected to commence late March early April time. The buses would be
numbered 301 to 326 and registered PTX 301-326R. It was announced also that
Alexander had promised delivery of the second batch by 31 December 1977. The order
for a further 23 similar buses for 1978/79 was also confirmed.
By the January of 1977 Willowbrook were working on the design of the new bodies and
ordering materials for their construction in the following three months. However by
March, Mr D.R. Smith the General Manager had been informed that chassis production
had been delayed due to industrial action at Bristol. Things were now not looking very
good. To make matters worse Bristol Commercial Vehicles were increasing their prices
by 12%. The summer of 1977 arrived and there was no sign of the new buses. Things
were getting desperate in the Cardiff fleet as older vehicles were being withdrawn.
Rather than recertifying these buses (Guy Arab Vs), it was decided to hire in suitable
vehicles to enable the conversion to one man operation to continue. And so began an
interesting chapter in Cardiff’s history.
Willowbrook had not bodied any batches of double deckers for a number of years. Some
L reg. Fleetlines for Nottingham and some L reg. Atlanteans for Brighton spring to mind.
The former were to more or less standard Nottingham style while the latter were
similar to Cardiff Fleetlines 526-550. In the summer of 1977 Willowbrook started to
deliver some Bristol VRTs to NBC operator Northern General. These however had
Leyland 510 engines. They had a new style of body, very box like, with deep windows,
and not unlike that produced as standard by MCW at the time. Of note were the odd
size windows in the lower offside of the bus. This was a taste of what Cardiff was to get.
Cardiff’s examples would then be followed by a batch for East Kent with Gardner
engines. Eventually in November 1977 the first two new Bristol VRTs were delivered.
No’s 302 and 303 arrived on the 18 th . They were built to full height configuration. The
first pair were rapidly followed by No’s 304 to 307 on the 21 st and 301 the following day.
No. 303 was used on driver familiarisation from 28/11/77 and the first into normal
15

service were 302 to 304 on December 1 st . Throughout December and the run up to
Christmas saw No’s 308 to 322 arrive while 323-326 were delivered on 28/12/77 after
being stored at Leicester’s Abbey Park garage. The last into service were No’s 322 to
326 in February 1978. Many entered service without their fog light fitted. Of note is that
this batch of buses introduced the new larger style fleet numbers and the first Gardner
6LXB engines to the fleet. Cardiff was seeking to evaluate a Volvo Ailsa in 1978 and a
deal was arranged with Scottish municipal operator Tayside Regional Transport. They
would supply an Ailsa on loan for about 6 months and in exchange one of Cardiff’s new
VRTs would go to Dundee. Tayside incidentally had a small fleet of long-wheelbase VRTs
with dual-door Alexander bodies. The vehicle selected was No.326, and it was driven to
an arranged half way point, where upon a swap was undertaken, 326 continuing north
with a Tayside driver at the wheel.
No. 370 on the 25 service at Barons Court Road. (Mac Winfield)
At this point in time there were still a further 88 Bristol VRTs on order. This figure was
reduced to 86 as the 1978/79 order was reduced from 23 to 21. The reason for this was
that Cardiff had ordered in their place a Leyland Leopard coach and a new Leyland Titan
double decker for evaluation. The next batch of VRTs would have Alexander bodies as
originally planned. They were now due in the summer of 1978 and would be numbered
327 to 360 (WTG 327 to 360T). Two would be built as convertible open-toppers. The
first to arrive were No’s 327 to 332 between October 3 rd and the 12 th 1978. Buses 327
and 328 entered service from Sloper Road on October 9 th .
16

No’s 333 to 337 were delivered later in October followed by 338 to 341 in November
and 342 to 358 in December/January. The last two buses in the batch (359/60) were the
convertible open-toppers and turned up in February 1979. They were in standard orange
and white fleet livery. The intention was that 359 and 360 would only be used as opentoppers
in the June to August period. Their first duties as such were to the 1979 Epsom
Derby for three days in early June. When they retuned to Cardiff they had their “lids”
put back on. The third batch now 21 in number would be numbered 361 to 381
(WTG 361 to 381T) and construction of these began at Alexanders in spring of 1979.
Delivery commenced in June and by July 1979 all were present and in service.
It is now known that the final batch of VRTs on order was reduced from 31 to just 16
vehicles in November 1977. This was due to the purchase of 14 second hand Leyland
Atlanteans at this time, to cover for late deliveries. This final batch would be numbered
382 to 397 and were due by March 1980. They were delivered between February 18 th
and March 25 h and some were pressed into service from March 3 rd .
Ninety seven new buses;
The delivery of a staggering 97 new double-deckers in just over two years saw the end of
half-cab operation in the Cardiff fleet in 1979. It also spelt the end for the second-hand
Leyland Atlanteans purchased in 1977/78 and witnessed the withdrawal of the number of
early Daimler Fleetlines dating from 1967/8. A large degree of standardisation had also
been achieved from an engineering point of view.
None of the new Bristols could be described as attractive looking buses, which was not
helped by the predominantly orange livery. The Alexander bodied VRTs (327 to 397) in
my opinion were better looking than their Willowbrook counterparts, and without
doubt of a far superior build quality. No’s 301 to 326 had four-piece folding doors and a
fairly plain front radiator grille featuring a Willowbrook badge. They had curved
windscreens and opening front upper deck vents. The Alexander examples had twopiece
glider doors and a large very distinctive black radiator moulding with a standard
Bristol VR badge attached. The Alexander body (designated AL) was of Aluminium frame
construction and based on a design introduced in 1970. These buses had well
pronounced fibre-glass moulded peaks at front and rear. It is thought that most buses
from the first batch No’s 327-360, were fitted with opening vents in the top deck front
windows when delivered. For some reason these gave trouble very early on as they let
water in. This resulted in water leaking into the destination box and then dripping down
into the cab area. These were removed and replaced by plain glass after a few months
service. No’s 352 and 353 did however linger on longer than most before they were
dealt with. All subsequent deliveries featured plain glass. Five sliding ventilators were to
be found on each deck on each side of the vehicle.
To ride on as a passenger, the series 3 VRTs were not particularly lively or comfortable
buses. They featured brown vinyl seats on both decks and a fibreglass bench at the rear
on the top deck. They were very noisy in the lower saloon, but were not as cramped as
the earlier Series 2 buses (586-605) which suffered from very restricted headroom. All
97 buses featured inward facing seats over the rear wheel arches.
17

Their deployment in Cardiff was on all the major City routes, a duty which they
performed for over 21 years! Having an overall height in the region of 14ft 6inches, this
prevented their use on many out of town services such as the Tredegar service. They
were occasionally used on the 30 service to Newport. The convertible open toppers
were usually de-roofed during the spring. The roof sections would be hoisted off the
buses at Roath depot, and remain suspended from the roof girders in the garage for the
season. In their place a shallow windscreen and handrails would be bolted to the vehicle.
No. 359 in Tramways livery at Barry Hawking Centre on 19/6/83
(Andrew Wiltshire)
The roof section was simply bolted into place on the bus and relevant wiring connected
up for lighting. No. 360 was loaned to Merthyr Tydfil for testing on 24 June 1985.
Following this No. 359 was then used on a Borough Tour for five days from July 1 st to
5 th . Both these vehicles lost their special tramways livery in May 1986, which they had
carried since 1983. Also in 1986, No. 364 was re-seated to H42/31F. The rear seats on
top deck were replaced by inward facing row of 3! This may have been an experiment to
reduce the anti-social behaviour often found on this part of a double-decker at night.
Later in their lives the Willowbrook bodies on the original batch started to suffer from
structural problems. They had to be extensively rebuilt in the region of the lower deck.
Frames and panels needed to be strengthened between the wheel arches.
The history of the Cardiff VRT Series 3’s will be continued in a future issue including the
transmission trials, road performance, special liveries and withdrawals.
18

THE SOUTHEND DODGES;
Many readers will recognise the vehicles on this page as wartime Canadian Dodges. This
chassis was popular in the post-war years particularly with small haulage firms. Many of
these chassis had been supplied to the British Army with either right or left hand drive
and most were fitted with General Service bodies along with the military split wheels and
10.50 x16 tyres.
These were known as D60L (Dodge, 60cwt, long).
During the post-war years these ex W.D. Dodges
were cheap to buy from dealers and M.O.S. sales.
They were robust with a 3.6 litre 95bhp six cylinder
side valve engine and a 2 speed axle. The first trucks
of the well known south Wales transport firm, Valley
Carriers Ltd. of Penarth were Canadian T110L
Dodges, usually fitted with Perkins P6 engines and
civilian wheels and 7.50 x 20 tyres. Your editor
recalls working on these in the early 1950’s.
Memories! - but I suppose you really want to know
about the bus featured below.
During the war the Royal Canadian Air Force brought
over purpose built Dodge crew buses for use in this
country. In 1945, with new buses in short supply,
Southend Corporation Transport purchased eight
former 1941 R.C.A.F. crew buses from North’s the Leeds dealer for £400 each. They
set about converting these vehicles for PSV use but they took so long over it that new
conventional buses became available and the Dodges became of little use to them.
19

CJN 786 (pictured) entered service in 1948 and DHJ 378/514 in 1949. GJN 214
appeared in 1953 (by then 12 years old -- obviously not a rush job). They were
numbered 1- 4 and as rebuilt had 26 seat front entrance bodies, increased to 28 in 1953,
and were mainly used for schools and peak hour relief work.
During the 1955 rail strike one was used for a Tilbury to St. Pancras service on hire to
British Railways. It is believed these were the only Dodges of this type in PSV service in
the U.K. No. 2-4 were withdrawn in 1956 and scrapped the next year, while No.1 was
converted to open top for use on local excursions. This one was scrapped in 1961 after
some two years use at an Airport. Of the four remaining Dodges, one was sold to a
local hospital, another used by the council as a gully emptier and the last two were
scrapped without being licensed.
The editor wishes to thank Richard Delahoy for material extracted from his book.
--------------------------------------------
A more well known wartime chassis, the ubiquitous Bedford OWB. This was the only single deck
chassis available in the U.K. for most of the war. In total 3398 were built.
20

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY 2011:
Wed. 19 th Oct;
Sat/Sun 22/23 Oct;
Sun. 30 th Oct;
Wed. 16 th Nov;
Wed. 21 st Dec;
Slide Show on Cardiff buses and local disused
railways by Mac Winfield.
Cardiff Model Railway show at UWIC Llandaff with
CTPG providing the free bus service.
Swansea Bus Museum Open Day.
‘Roads, Rails and Waters’ around Cardiff presented
by Andrew Wiltshire
Quiz Night with Chris Taylor.
IMPORTANT;
The meeting on 19 th October will be the last to be held at County Hall, Cardiff Bay. The
venue for subsequent meetings up to the AGM on 18 th January will be Penarth
Conservative Club, Stanwell Rd, Penarth. Please keep in touch via our website.
EDITOR’S NOTE;
On a personal note, I would like to thank members for their visits and kind wishes during
my recent stay in hospital. The grapes were delicious!
This summer saw the 10 th anniversary of the first CTPG
Newsletter in its present format. Edited by Steve
Morgan, issue No.1 (Summer 2001 opposite), looked
forward to the centenary of CCT to be held the
following year.
It also reported was that Cardiff 570 had been saved for
preservation at the final hour having been in Ireland for
the previous 14 years.
Another article marked the withdrawal of Cardiff Bus
services in the Rhymney Valley, allowing Stagecoach to
step in and fill in the gap.
Also in 2001, Paul Hamley volunteered (?) to become
Group Treasurer along with Glyn Bowen as Chairman
and Martin Doe as Vice Chairman.
Unfortunately, the production of the early newsletters
was spasmodic, with only 3 issues appearing in the
period to 2004.
It then became a quarterly edited by the new Chairman, Mike Taylor. Cliff Parker took
over as editor the following year and served for 4 years until I was appointed the editor
in Jan. 2009. According to my reckoning this issue is No. 35.
Over the past decade some excellent articles have been submitted, so lads --- ‘keep
them coming.’ Email copy and comments to viv.corbin@ntlworld.com
Footnote; I hear that Cardiff Council will begin the rebuilding of Central Bus Station
after the Olympics. Is that 2012 or 2018?
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 Mike Taylor, 10 Ger Nant Ystrad Mynach, Hengoed CF82 7FE Phone:
01443 753227
email: mikeystrad73@btinternet.com
Deputy Chairman Chris Taylor, 31 Heol Wen, Rhiwbina Cardiff CF14 6EG Phone: 02920
693734
Secretary
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

The Tiger Cub of Paul Burgess overtakes our Clipper 143 on the climb past Gurnos and
Pontypridd No.8 on its first trip since restoration. In 1969 this was the last Regent V to
be registered in the U.K. Both views taken at Bus & Coach Wales 2011by Paul Hamley.
23

Martin Doe’s Rhondda Regent off-loads at Brecon Mountain Railway at Dowlais and a
general view of the rally site at the 2011 Bus & Coach Wales event in Merthyr Tydfil.
Both views by Tudor Thomas.
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