Buses in Nottingham

[taxi ray 170]

Ashley, looking at an old map, on the road from Codnor to Loscoe there was a railway line going across the road, so I presume that is where Loscoe crossing was, there is also a station on the map Crosshill and Codnor station.

Looking at a modern map there is a small street, called station lane, this is between Codnor Denby lane and Waingroves road

[Ashley 288]

Anyone know locations of the Nottm/Ripley photos?

I know the following, (guess most will)

photo no. ending 067 King St/Queen St Nottingham

068 coming off Mansfield Rd approaching Gregory Blvd before turning up Sherwood Rise

069 on Valley Rd Basford between Nottingham Rd and Radford Rd, will turn right to go over Church St railway bridge

[StephenFord 866]

05 is presumably at Langley Mill depot, and shows the old fleet (half-cabs) on the right and the new fleet (full-front) on the left. So this probably dates it to about 1946-47? Amazing that they should have re-equipped so shortly before abandonment, but I seem to think this was because Notts & Derby/Midland General were in the Balfour Beatty group who were part of the private electricity generating industry. When the industry was nationalised the implications of having to buy electricity at commercial rates stood the economics of trolleybus operation on their head.

516 shows a single decker with the destination Cotmanhay, so it is obviously somewhere in the "greater Ilkeston conurbation"(!) - between Cotmanhay and Hallam Fields. Any Il'son specialists?

[Cliff Ton 10,470]

Ashley, the other two are apparently Langley Mill http://www.pictureth...000005&prevUrl=

and Ilkeston http://www.pictureth...000516&prevUrl=

[briyeo 56]

This could be the Loscoe crossing refered to in the timetable, as already said it is a level crossing for the Loscoe colliery railway line that eventually joins the Midland line at Langley Mill. The colliery closed in 1933.

http://www.picturethepast.org.uk/frontend.php?keywords=Ref_No_increment%3BEQUALS%3BDCAV002165&pos=2&action=zoom

[Ashley 288]

Re the crossing photo, trouble with me is I've no idea what these various area's are/were called, to me that photo reminds me of the old road to Matlock at Langley Mill, you turned right at The Midland Hotel and along a road with 2 or 3 ungated level crossings from pits to the canal or former Great Northern Railway

[briyeo 56]

Ashley this particular crossing was down the hill from Heanor heading towards Codnor and then Ripley, more or less across the road from the more recently closed Ormonde colliery at Loscoe.

The Cromford road you mention did have two railway crossings. The first was for the Smiths flower mill and the second was for Moorgreen Colliery both linking to the Midland line. The Moorgreen crossing was gated, I was held up there many times.I cant remember ever seeing the Smiths one used.

[Ashley 288]

Like I said don't really know the area, only recall those lines as most unfriendly towards motorbikes esp in the wet! never did see any trains on them, assumed GNR because of ex Midland being high up just along the road to Heanor, found a few pics of that bridge I recalled, several pic it was near Steam Mill Lane and known as Iron Bridge leading to Britain pit? several pics on picture the past, some with A1 bus on last day on trolley service. can't download as my photobucket gone wrong or rather the system has, seems I need different windows or different version of outlook express? (text is jumbled with download button} Only ever been to Heanor twice, both times in dark, once with Sovereign band, played at miners welfare, and once to some newspaper depot about 5am to pick up 10 million trader papers or seemed thus, said I'd deliver in a day! gave up at teatime and dumped the still over half to deliver back

[briyeo 56]

Who would have thought Corgi would ever have released a model of a N&D Weymann Trolley bus, I bought a dozen of them for my collection

Someone will be able to tell me where this is I'm sure.

[denshaw 2,872]

Just turned left on to Stockhill lane?

[Paulus 541]

Same place as I caught the 41 to Trent Bridge many years later, (school run)

[Trevor S 2,003]

Does anybody know why these buses were apparently converted from engine to electric power?

Was it austerity measures in the 40s due to shortage of fuel?

Looking at Cliff Ton's post a #208, money appeared to be an issue when you look at the lack of tread on the front tyre!

http://website.lineone.net/~john-mightycat/nottsxderby327b.jpg

[StephenFord 866]

They weren't converted. These were the original Notts & Derby trolleybuses, as supplied in 1933, with half-cab style bodies like motor buses. (Bus bodies were supplied by different manufacturers from the chassis, and it was quite possible to mount different designs of body on a particular chassis - e.g. motor or trolleybus). Some companies (Barton for example) later had quite a lot of motor buses with full front bodies, which arguably looked like trolleybuses. There is some suggestion that the enclosed area to the left of the driver on full-front trolleybuses tended to steam up, obscuring the drivers' view. When this happened it was a bit of a scramble to get in there to wipe the windows. With a half-cab the driver could wipe the windows on both sides of him without leaving his seat.

[Trevor S 2,003]

Thanks Stephen. That explains it.

[briyeo 56]

These vehicles were not converted motor buses they were built new like this in 1933. The chassis is an AEC 661T-EEC, this is a trolley bus chassis. the body is by Metropolitan Cammell Carriage and Wagon Company (MCCW). Chassis and bodies were separately sourced items back then and could be mixed and matched so to speak.

Maybe the company just wanted the electric vehicles to look like conventional motor buses or they got a special deal on the bodies.

There was a whole different outlook on tyre tread years ago I think and the laws governing this were probably very loose. I remember when I was at school 1965 we had the pleasure of a tour around the Langley Mill depot. One of the things that I remember was a demonstration of cutting a tread on a bald looking tyre with a hand held cutting tool a little like a grooving plane you would use in woodwork.

You beat me to it Stephen, I was still looking through my fleet history book for any extra info .

[denshaw 2,872]

They still had those tyre cutters in the eighties, NCT used to "rent" their tyres, pay so much per mile.

[Ashley 288]

Yes recall those electric tyre cutters in use in the late 80's at Bamford's scrap yard Awsworth, when I went there looking for an engine for a boat, also got the Stockhill Lane photo with the Thomas North Pit Railway Bridge in background

[briyeo 56]

I'm quite shocked to find you are still able to re-cut tyres or at least modern electric cutters are available now.

http://tyre-rite.co.uk/searchresult.aspx?CategoryID=21

Don't try this at home.

[catfan 14,793]

Tyre re-cutting is still done today. Two of my wagon tyres were re-cut last week. Commercial tyres are designed to be re-cut.

[Limey 242]

One form of tire cutting is called "Siping" - it is fairly common over here, but the pros and cons don't seem to be well defined.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siping_(rubber)

[briyeo 56]

Daimler CVD6 belonging to the well-known independent W. Gash & Sons of Newark, pictured at a rally at Meltham near Holmfirth.

[Trevor S 2,003]

Thanks Briyeo, remember these travelling along the A52 on a regular basis past our home in RoT...Nottingham to Newark back in the 50s. Same colours as well.

[Ashley 288]

Re last 2 posts, 1) you sure that's near Holmfirth? only no sign of compo, clegg, marina or the rest of the mob, 2) the photo of the single decker at Huntingdon Street reminds me of the first (and only time via bus) I visited my wife's home town in Scotland was just before Christmas 1966, left about 8pm? was raining, by time got to Ilkeston snowing, was on and off thus rest of way till we got to Lockerbie, remembered for later reasons, had been issued with blankets and warning we might not get through, however got to Glasgow god knows what time next day, never been so cold in my life, still dark, then got local bus to Dumbarton. cannot recall return trip, probably aided by large number of cans of local "heavy"

[StephenFord 866]

Well, for a bit more "anorak-sia", have a look at this link www.old-bus-photos.co.uk/wp-content/themes/Old-Bus-Photos/videos/videos_main_page.php and scroll down to "Daimler CVD6 (W Gash & Son)(so)" (so = sound only) - and hear what one sounded like setting out for Newark (Direct).

[Paulus 541]

I listened to all that......................I'm gonna have to lay down in a dakened room until the feeling goes!!................another childhood memory, lot's of travelling on buses, perhaps not Gash's, but similar. I always wanted to drive buses, never did, it's amazing how a familar/forgotten sound can be so evocative, that's Nottstalgia at its best....................