Remembering 'The Flintstones'

SWT single deck AEC Regent V No. 34 pictured when new in 1959. 
These buses had seats for just 37 passengers.

When, in March 1952, South Wales Transport took over the fleet of Llanelly & District Traction, it inherited an interesting, if ageing, bus fleet.

Included were, of course, the double deck trolleybuses which ran on the principal town services in Llanelli and these have been well documented elsewhere.

Bridges
There was also a fleet of AEC Regal single-deckers, some dating back to the 1930s, with low-height bodywork for use on routes L7 and L8 (Penyfan to Morfa and Machynis) in the Llanelli Docks area which had several bridges with a clearance of only nine feet.

No. 37 emerges from beneath one of the low bridges in the Llanelli docks area, illustrating the
 reason why these vehicles were built.

Clearly, these buses would eventually need replacement but by the mid 1950s SWT's preferred supplier, AEC of Middlesex, had switched single deck bus production for the home market to the Reliance.

This model had a high floor line to accommodate its underfloor engine and therefore was unsuitable for the low-height bodywork need at Llanelli.

Height
SWT therefore opted for a low height single deck body fitted to its then standard double deck chassis, the AEC Regent V. In July 1959 the company took delivery of two unique single-deck vehicles which had the appearance of double deckers which had lost their upper floors!  Their 37 seat bodies were built by Charles H. Roe of Leeds.

The two vehicles were numbered 33 and 34 (TCY 101-102) in the SWT fleet and their light body weight meant that they could show a good turn of speed!

Clearly these vehicles, which became nicknamed 'Flintstones' by some crews, were a success and a further six almost identical buses, numbered 35-40 (279-284 DWN) were delivered in 1963 to replace further former Llanelly & District buses dating from the 1950s.

Three of the single-deck Regent Vs lined up at Llanelli depot. 
Left to right: nos. 39, 35 and 36.

One-man

These low-height buses became totally unique and were the only eight of their kind produced,.

It should be remembered that at that time one-man operation of buses in the UK was comparatively rare and so all the Llanelli vehicles ran in service with a driver and a conductor on board.  In 1967 one of them, number 37, was converted to one-man operation as an experiment but it allegedly failed to gain acceptance by the trades unions.

Later, several of the Llanelli routes were converted to conventional single-deck operation as bridges were removed or services rerouted. In consequence certain of the single deck Regents were transferred away to Pontardawe, Ammanford or Brunswick Street (Swansea) depots. In 1970, as part of the nationalization process, all were later given new fleet numbers 209/210 and 255-260 as part of the combined SWT and United Welsh fleets.

Sold
The buses remained in the SWT fleet until 1972 after which they were sold to smaller operators and contractors including one which operated in London’s docklands. The first two, however, were retained by SWT as staff buses, painted in blue and yellow liveries.

TCY 102 in use as a staff bus at Gorseinon depot in July 1974.

Sad end: TCY 102 derelict and awaiting the scrap man at Port Talbot depot.  The vehicle alongside is the remains former United Welsh 1952 Bristol  KSW 1203 (HWN 339) which had been in use as a towing vehicle  and which was cannibalised for spare parts for SWT open topper
 500 (WNO 484).

One of these interesting little buses still survives; number 38 has been preserved and is part of the Swansea Bus Museum collection.  

Happy ending: 
38 has been preserved and is seen here at Ravenhill following 
a repaint as part of SWT's 75th Anniversary celebrations in 1989. 
It is now part of the Swansea Bus Museum collection.

Northern Sisters
Contrary to popular belief, the SWT single deck AEC Regent Vs were not the only such vehicles to run in the UK. Two others ran in in the North, as below:

Coal Industry Social Welfare Org.     
MD3RV496       2690 UG    Roe GO5205     B37F   built 1960  

Leeds City Welfare Services     
MD3RV497       8895 UB     Roe GO5154     B20F  built 1960   

AEC Regent V MD3RV 8895 UB 
which was built for the Leeds City Welfare Services. 
(Photo: Omnibus Society)

A UW LS in OZ.

A Lost United Welsh Coach turns up in Australia.

 
In 2004 a former United Welsh coach turned up in Perth, Western Australia, having been 'lost' for almost thirty years.

1956-built Bristol LS6G coach NCY 627 was originally numbered 1 in the United Welsh fleet, later being converted for bus use and renumbered 355 when absorbed into the SWT fleet. Now owned by Marie Fennell in Perth, the vehicle is being restored as near as possible to United Welsh condition by John Revill.

NCY 627 at various stages in its UK history.

 

Above: NCY 627 in 2004.

Photographs courtesy of John Revill, Perth WA.

The Aluminium Experiment

Unpainted 516 (RCY 358) and one of its painted sisters, 520 (RCY 362) posed at Ravenhill  shortly after delivery in 1958. Ventilators were later added to the front  upper deck and lower saloon windows (see below).

The late ‘fifties were difficult times for Britain’s bus companies. Rising wages, increasing car ownership and declining passenger numbers made for a difficult trading environment; reflecting the downward trend nationally, in 1957 SWT reported a loss of 500,000 passengers compared with the previous year.

Suez
1956 had been the year of the Suez crisis bringing with it steeply rising oil prices and fuel rationing. The company had found it necessary to curtail some services.

Cutting costs became the order of the day and a number of bus companies, including SWT, experimented with unpainted vehicles; Swansea’s famous ‘silver buses’ were born.

530 posed outside Swansea Guildhall.

The first six were part of the 1958 intake of twenty six Weymann bodied AEC Regent Vs. Coincidentally, these were the first front entrance double deckers in the SWT fleet. They certainly looked impressive when brand new, with their polished aluminium exteriors reflecting the sunlight!

Identical
A further seven almost identical buses were added to the fleet in 1959 and all were to be seen on routes throughout Swansea, working from Ravenhill and Brunswick Street depots.

Similar experiments were carried elsewhere, most notably at Liverpool and even London Transport ran one of its famous Routemasters in unpainted condition for a while.

Keeping the 'aluminium Regents' looking good  never was the easiest of tasks. Here, 531 passes
 through the wash at Brunswick St. depot.

In the long term, the silver buses proved to be a false economy. While the unpainted vehicles offered certain cost advantages at the time of delivery, ongoing cleaning and maintenance costs were often higher. This was because small dents and scrapes which, on a red bus could simply be filled and painted, on an unpainted one involved totally replacing one or more body panels. A bus which had received several repairs would take on a patchwork appearance!

Test
Swansea’s sea air was in fact a good test for the vehicles and the only severe long term corrosion was in the steel canopy above the bonnet which was treated with silver cellulose paint.

Most alarmingly there was an unexpected safety hazard; in certain lighting conditions, presumably associated with foggy weather, the unpainted buses would be difficult to see.

Silver AEC Regent V no. 529 (SWN 992) built in 1959 at Oystermouth bus station  on its way to Newton on half hourly service 86.

A busy scene at Oystermouth as 529 loads up with passengers for Newton.

531 (SWN 994) at Caswell Bay terminus. 
 Services were later extended to a terminus in Caswell Bay car park, nearer the beach.

  Saving 
In 1961 it was estimated that the cost saving was only about £300 per bus, spread over the 10-12 year life of the vehicle. By 1966 the buses were looking more than a little shabby and as overhauls became due, all thirteen silver Regents were consigned to the paint shop to receive a coat of red paint.

The buses remained in the SWT fleet until 1970-71, after which some found further service with smaller operators, including Eynons of Trimsaran who used one of them on their Llanelli to Carmarthen service.

Upper and lower deck interior detail of the 1958 AEC Regents.

The Unpainted Buses 
1958 AEC Regent V LD3RAs with Weymann 71-seat bodywork:       

504 RCY 346  508 RCY 350 511 RCY 353  516 RCY 358 519 RCY 361  526 RCY 368 

1959 AEC Regent V 2D3RAs with Weymann 71-seat bodywork:

527-533 SWN 990-996