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| WEB NEWS 59 | ||||||||||||||||||||
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In this issue of WHOTT Web News we take a brief at The Challenge of Steam Propulsion - 2 and All change at Plymouth. |
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The Challenge of Steam Propulsion -
2 -
During February 1907, upon hearing of the withdrawal of the Torquay
& District buses, Messrs Nash Brothers (of the Cirencester &
District Motor Omnibus Company) wrote to Torquay Town Council asking
whether licences could be granted to them to ply for hire over
routes in Torquay which would not be served by the trams. The
council agreed, subject to the buses being in good order, but
pointed out that a local syndicate were already arranging a new
service of buses to run in Torquay. Nash Bros withdrew their idea
and instead decided to open a service from Paignton to Torquay, thus
competing with the GWR road motor service established in 1904. It
was arranged for Richard Coombes of 1 Torbay Terrace, Paignton to
act as secretary. He was already a horse bus proprietor running
between Paignton and Torquay and to Totnes, as well as being an
auctioneer, estate agent, coal merchant and furniture remover. On
28th March 1907 Mr Coombes wrote to Paignton UDC asking for licences
to run three noiseless steam motor buses between the three towns and
the request was granted. Two of these vehicles were registered AD303
and AD304, being Clarkson steam buses delivered new to the Nash
brothers at Lechlade in May 1904. Six weeks after the Torquay & District Company withdrew their buses to Harrogate, the newly formed Torquay Road Car Company commenced their first route on Saturday 23rd March 1907 with one Clarkson steam bus registered CA151. It operated a half-hourly service between the Strand and Higher Chelston via Torquay railway station. Two days later two more steam buses arrived, these being sister vehicles registered CA150 and CA155 which enabled the company to extend the route to Babbacombe Downs at the same frequency. The three 17-seat vehicles had come from the Vale of Llangollen Engineering Bus and Garage Co Ltd. The Torquay Directory dated 27th March announced that a fourth steam bus had been acquired, this time from the Great Western Railway. Registered DA82, it enabled a new route from the Strand to Torre Station via Old Mill Road. Two days later th  e Torquay Times announced that the Torquay Road Car Company
were now running between Strand and Chelston, and Strand to
Babbacombe Downs on a half-hourly service serving both railway
stations. These hastily introduced steam bus services were an attempt to challenge the new tram system which had long been under construction and eventually commenced running just a matter of days later on 5th April 1907. The new Torquay company obtained a further Clarkson steam bus from the GWR in June, this carrying the registration number DA80. Who was behind the new venture? On 12th April it was reported that a meeting of the shareholders of the former Torquay company had taken place the previous Thursday when the liquidator, Mr W Eliot Thomas, assured them that the capital had been returned and that a ‘substantial bonus’ would be due following income tax and insurance etc. It can be assumed, but not proven, that these shareholders were prepared to re-invest in the new Torquay company which was anxious to get off to a flying start. The Torquay Times of 5th May reported that it was a pity the buses of the Paignton company were also green like the Torquay ones! They also said that 1728 £1 shares were allotted and paid up, £1600 had been paid to the Vale of Llangollen company and the GWR on account in respect of four cars and £132 for the carriage of cars, renovation of bodies and overhaul of chassis etc, making a total of £1732. The company’s buses were not likely to be ousted by the trams and an advance from the company’s bankers would be obtained to pay for the extra car. Licences to drive the motor buses had been issued to two men bearing the ominous surname, Death. They are known to have come from Chelmsford and probably brought the vehicles from Clarkson’s works which had taken them back from the previous users. In July 1907 the route to Torre was suspended, owing to competition from the trams but in October was resumed via Lower Chelston. In mid November the tram route was extended to Babbacombe and by the end of the month the Road Car service to Babbacombe and St Marychurch was suspended for the winter months. The Torquay Times dated 1st November 1907 stated that Torquay motor buses had resumed running from Torre railway station and had received a new bus body from the GWR and will put it on the road next week! Presumably after it had been fitted to a chassis. Research tells us that this body had been carried on the GWR’s Clarkson steam bus registered DA81. These three vehicles had started life with the GWR at Wolverhampton for a service to Bridgnorth but had later been moved to Highbridge for a service to Wedmore and Cheddar. |
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| All change at Plymouth - Sunday 6th September marked an historic occasion in Plymouth when Stagecoach took over the assets of First Group. This was no ordinary change because it had not come out of competition, nor of succession, but virtually by invitation. Ever since bus services had been run in Plymouth, the local authority had provided about two thirds of the routes and these were eventually sold to the Go Ahead group in 2009. The other third had been developed from a handful of independent operators into two main providers, the Devon Motor Transport Company (DMT) and the road motors of the Great Western Railway. In 1928 the expanding National Omnibus &Transport Company took over DMT and in the following year the GWR buses merged with those of the National company to form the new Western National. This then left Western National and the Corporation as the two main providers. Over the years they maintained a 1/3rd and 2/3rd coverage respectively and only political changes influenced the ownership of these operations. Western National became part of the National Bus Company, though still retained its local name and later, upon privatisation, became part of the Badger Group before absorption by First. The Corporation, in 1986, divested its bus interest into a wholly owned subsidiary company called Citybus which eventually sold to Go Ahead. All these developments can be considered a logical and natural progression. However, the latest development, witnessing Stagecoach occupying fresh operating territory in Plymouth and the South Hams came as a surprise. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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