A recent day out took friend Peter Rose and myself into pastures new when the transport delights of ‘Sandtoft Trolleybus Museum’ were explored.
As we have done before, we have combined all the images we gathered on the day.
The credits being joint D.Basford/P.M.Rose.
The early years of this, the third decade of this century has seen a rush to electric traction for buses albeit with the extensive use of batteries to store the electricity.
Many of the younger generation may not realise that the rush to electric traction for buses originally started in the 1920s and 30s and peaked in the 1950s.
At that time the electricity came down wires that required a lot of overhead infrastructure and numbers of support poles to get it to the buses.
That was part of the downfall of the trolleybus because it was expensive to construct and expensive to replace when time expired.
It was unsightly and just imagine getting planning permission for getting more of it erected these days.
The trolleybus, then, was a bit of a blind alley but it is fondly remembered by many who grew up with it for its cleanliness and quietness.
Hence the numbers of people who turn up regularly to see and to ride.
Many modern day operators would be delighted to see the queues that formed for the experience..
The only downside to the museum has to be its location which is on the Isle of Axholme northeast of Doncaster.
Just in Lincolnshire and as such, literally, miles from any substantial centre of population.
In all the images in this blog, note the amount of wiring and the number of poles.
CDT 636 ‘Doncaster Corporation Transport’ No. 375.
Karrier W4 / Roe /1
on Dennis Basford’s railsroadsrunways.blogspot.co.uk’
Built in 1945 with a ‘Park Royal’ body as No. 75 and subsequently re-bodied by ‘Roe’ in 1955.
CDT 636 ‘Doncaster Corporation Transport’ No. 375.
Karrier W4 / Roe /2
on Dennis Basford’s railsroadsrunways.blogspot.co.uk’
Pictured with other buses waiting their turn in service.
HYM 812 ‘London Transport’ No. 812.
BUT 9641T / Metro-Cammell /1
on Dennis Basford’s railsroadsrunways.blogspot.co.uk’
HYM 812 ‘London Transport’ No. 812.
BUT 9641T / Metro-Cammell /2
on Dennis Basford’s railsroadsrunways.blogspot.co.uk’
EKU 746 ‘Bradford Corporation Transport’ No. 746.
BUT 9611T / Roe /1
on Dennis Basford’s railsroadsrunways.blogspot.co.uk’
EKU 746 ‘Bradford Corporation Transport’ No. 746.
BUT 9611T / Roe /2
on Dennis Basford’s railsroadsrunways.blogspot.co.uk’
EKU 746 ‘Bradford Corporation Transport’ No. 746.
BUT 9611T / Roe /3
on Dennis Basford’s railsroadsrunways.blogspot.co.uk’
Later in the day, this bus had some form of malfunction which required its removal by a tractor.
We hope that it was nothing serious.
FTO 614 ‘Nottingham City Transport’ No. 802.
AEC Regent / Metro-Cammell
on Dennis Basford’s railsroadsrunways.blogspot.co.uk’
New as service bus No. 31 in 1939.
Following an accident in 1950, it was withdrawn by NCT and converted into a tower wagon for servicing the trolleybus infrastructure.
