One very cold morning a Leyland National was brought over by its driver to top up the water. Once inside the garage, while the driver did his chores the brakes seized up and proved to be unmoveable (the LN’s were prone to this in cold weather).
The 191s were operated by both LFS/FLF types and in the main was not a busy route. Most of the route was shared with 189/90 workings with the 189 going onto Oakington and the 190 to Bar Hill, and were saloon operated. Other main City routes were 192/3 serving the Newmarket Road estates and Cherry Hinton estates, the little-used 194 ran between Newham and Brooks Road and was LH operated.
On another occasion, while working the Station with the late Ernie Garlic, we both had to answer the call of nature when we returned to the station. We both walked into the station and made our way to the little boy’s room. I decided to sit down for the performance. Having concluded the paperwork I then made my way back to the vehicle outside only to find that both Ernie and the LFS were missing! Strange I thought and in the true British tradition when in a crisis went and got a cup of tea while I waited for Ernie to reappear. The minutes ticked by the next service arrived. Have you seen Ernie Garlic I asked the crew. No, they replied. Time to ring the office. So I phoned in to report that my driver and bus had gone AWOL. Sit there and wait I was told and so I had another cup of BR tea. Shortly afterwards Cliff Day the operation foreman of the day arrived with a VR. Better have a look down the town he said and set off we did. We went as far as Woolworth’s and around the block via Trinity Street and back up to Bradwells Court. No sign at all of our Ernie. So we made our way back to the station, still no sign of Ernie so back to the garage and waiting inside was Ernie and the LFS. What had happened was that when Ernie returned to the vehicle he dived into his newspaper and some wag rang the bell as he or she boarded the vehicle. Ernie on hearing the bell puts the paper down and fires up the engine. It was not until he stood outside Woolworths for several minutes waiting for the bell that he realized that I was not there. Having transferred his passengers onto the next service car, he then came looking for me.
Each garage it seem had its rouge car and for the crews, this used to be LFS55 (55CPW) which was booked up at every conceivable juncture by the crews and was substituted in service more than any other vehicle. One cold snowy winter morning, my colleague and I had to run light out to the Wilbrahams and run back in as a 110 service. Our car for the duty, the fore-mention LFS55. We got there with no problems, but coming back up Fulbourn Hill, on the return with a load of about 40 passengers proved too much. The Council workers (can’t remember if it was the City or Country were out on strike at that time) and the hill had yet to be gritted. As we started to climb the hill the LFS started to slip & and slide back down the hill at an angle, it had no purchase on the road. Having asked my passengers to move to the rear of the vehicle, in an attempt to get some extra weight over the rear wheels (it’s astonishing how quickly people suddenly become deaf) no one moved. I then suggested to my mate that he turn the engine off, get out, and have a smoke as we were not going anywhere, to which he replied I can’t the hand brake, not holdings! So we sat and waited, when, within some thirty minutes or so flashing amber lights could be seen coming along the road from Balsham, it turned out to be a gritting lorry, after throwing some salt under our wheels we were back in business getting in somewhat late. Just in the nick of time, my colleague’s leg was starting to go numb. Someone had the cheek-to-phone up complaining about our late running!
Another oddity I did a few times on overtime, was a 111 from Bottisham, this was the only time that I had to issue return tickets, possibly something to do with the fact that Burwell & District also working the road as well. The late-night 195s were an absolute bore running between the Golden Hind and Sawston. If you leave on time, you can guarantee that you be waiting for time at each bus stop. So we would hold back a while, sometimes in the pub, there is one at each end of the route. The day two drivers were promoted to Inspectors, we had one of these duties, unknown to us, we were being shadowed by them in the inspectors van. Waiting for a time at the White Horse Sawston, we left some 12 minutes late for the run into town and onto the Golden Hind. The service then returned to Pamisford, before running back to the garage via the City Centre. It was usual practice that if by the time we hit Brooklands Avenue, no one was on board, it was three bells and we would run up Brooklands Avenue into the garage from the wrong direction. On this night our ever-keen new inspectors were waiting inside the doors of the garage checking in the buses and witnessing our arrival from the wrong direction! Such was the jubilation that they had been able to put someone’s name in their new books, that when they filled in the charge sheet, it was alleged that we had left Sawston some twelve minutes late and arrived in the garage some fifteen minutes early all on the same journey! Not bad for a twenty-five-minute run!
I had the opportunity to go for my PSV license and was placed in the driving school for two weeks, the first three days being spent in the classroom doing all the theory, etc. As the Leyland National was such a weird beast to drive it had its driving manual. Following a medical with the company doctor, we were then taken up to Bourn airfield in the yellow peril (X64) and let loose on the runway, as this was my first time behind a steering wheel, I found that I was quickly running out of concrete, as I weave in and out of the cones trying to master the fundamentals of driving a bus and having someone bellowing in ones left ear all the time, found it very off-putting indeed! The Cambridgeshire Police were also present with some of their drivers learning to drive their new coach (Bedford YMT Plaxton WCE95T, now with Dews). Having grasped the basics I was allowed to drive the LFS back to Hills Road for lunch, which was reached without mishap.
Following a few days of driving around Cambridge and reversing around umpteen corners. We were tasked with driving up to the Plaxton’s factory in Ware to collect some windscreens and take them onto the Lowestoft garage. I had to drive up to Ware in thick fog and later on, the return from Lowestoft, which enabled me to get in some night driving on the way back. As the company was in the process of purchasing the Burwell & District business, we had to drive out to Burwell to collect several things from their office, by the time we had arrived there the change over of vehicles had been effected. The once familiar Brown & White buses were being replaced by standard Eastern Counties Stock, (I must admit at this time I had no idea who B & D were, or where they were based, but I do remember seeing their buses in town.). The Burwell drivers did not seem too happy with their new charges which include the last operational Bristol MW in the fleet (LM640 or 641).
The following day was taken up driving around the Ely and Newmarket areas, with a lunch break being taken at Newmarket garage. The Beach was full of rows of Burwell & District vehicles, awaiting their fate and looking somewhat forlorn & and sorry for themselves, most being adorned with slogans proclaiming the end of an era and that it was. An end of yet another family-run company. Most of the buses were sold for scrap, but four vehicles were spared. One being Jim Neale’s 9DER with three others being sold for further PSV use. If only I had a camera. Following a few more days of driving in and around Cambridge, which also took in the formidable Mill Road, came the big day. For the driving test, as I did not have a car license, I had to be tested by a man from the Ministry, I am not sure if having the examiner join me in the cab during the emergency stop clouded his judgment, but he failed me!
The next day it was back to the ticket machine and a trainee conductor to look after for a few days, You got extra money when you had a trainee with you and they did all the leg work as well. One of my shifts that week contained an afternoon of spare conductors. While up in the canteen, we were summoned down to the foreman’s office, we were required to work a 155 service to St Ives, with an OMO driver. His Leyland National had failed and the only spare car was LFS107 (this LFS also doubles up as a training vehicle and the window behind the driver was therefore removable) Still being fairly new to the area, I always thought St Ives was in Cornwall! and wondered if we would ever make it. Off we set, with me pondering how can you advise a trainee on a route I have never done before! As it turned out the punters were quite helpful. So I may have worked the last crew journey to St Ives.
On another occasion, while working a bit of overtime one morning, we had to do relief from Coton and then from Linton on the 113, our chosen car is a rather tatty LS in National Express livery, which had failed near Cambridge and had been pulled in and repaired overnight and was put to use before returning to Norwich. Some of the X duties were quite interesting, with runs to Hadstock, Toft, Saffron Walden & and Waterbeach thrown in. Sunday duties in the main were quite boring, the main crew working being service 185/7 (Arbury- New Hospital) one being clockwise the other anti-clockwise via Chesterton. Other Sunday duties include round trips on the 184 and 109, another duty was spent on the 191 for which OMO cars would be provided. During my time there I only did them once. On the 191’s, lunch break had to be taken at Gonville Place. As the day that we worked the service, was a summer’s Sunday both my mate and I arranged that our wives would join us en route with our lunches, sadly my wife remembered to pick up the shopping bag but forgot to put the sandwiches in! Whenever the crews worked an OMO vehicle, it would usually be one of the older vehicles. Leyland Nationals from the LN550-4 batch were quite memorable if only from their lack of stabilisers and gave an appalling ride. This batch of Leyland Nationals would have made good simulators for the cross-channel ferry crews.
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