28-592: The Bristol LH was a single-decker bus chassis built by Bristol Commercial Vehicles (BCV) in Bristol , England. Nearly 2,000 were built between 1967 and 1982 in a variety of sizes and body types, including some as goods vehicles. The LH designation stood for Lightweight chassis, Horizontal engine. It replaced the Bristol SU and was succeeded by the Leyland National B Series for operators in need of
56-414: A coach bus , motorcoach or parlor coach ) is a type of bus built for longer-distance service, in contrast to transit buses that are typically used within a single metropolitan region. Often used for touring , intercity , and international bus service, coaches are also used for private charter for various purposes. Coaches are also related and fall under a specific category/type of RVs . Deriving
84-419: A body to be added. A few coaches are built with monocoque bodies without a chassis frame. Integrated manufacturers (most of whom also supply chassis) include Autosan , Scania , Fuso , and Alexander Dennis . Major coachwork providers (some of whom can build their own chassis) include Van Hool , Neoplan , Marcopolo , Irizar , MCI , Prevost , Volvo and Designline . In some European countries following
112-464: A further 15 were added to the fleet. Eastern National bought four LH6Ls in 1977, all with Leyland O.401 engines, 5-speed manual gearboxes, ECW bodies and dual headlight fronts. They were intended for the more lightly loaded rural routes and were operated out of the Colchester depot. All four were sold to Hedingham & District Omnibuses in 1982 and one has been preserved. Eastern Scottish
140-399: A small or lightweight bus. The Bristol RE was in production at the same time for those in need of larger or more robust vehicles. The standard Bristol LH model was 30 feet (9.1 m) long. It was also available as the 26 feet (7.9 m) LHS (LH Short) and the 36 feet (11 m) LHL (LH Long). The width of the chassis was 7.5 feet (2.3 m) but bodies as wide as 8.17 feet (2.5 m)
168-642: Is a largely rural county so Lincolnshire Road Car always had a need for a number of small buses. Their orders amounted to 72 standard buses, 24 dual purpose, and 10 LHS buses. London Country Bus Services 23 standard width LHSs (their BL class) and 44 narrow LHSs (their BN class) as no other suitable narrow vehicles were available at the time. Several versions of the Bristol LH were used by London Transport . 17 narrow LHSs with five-speed gearboxes were delivered to in 1975 to replace Ford Transit minibuses on narrow roads. Although fitted with five-speed gearboxes
196-595: The Royal Blue brand. Neighbouring Devon General was also brought under Western National control in 1971, having just placed their first order for 6 LHs (88–93). The orders for this large fleet of 209 buses and coaches were spread across ECW, Marshall, Plaxton and even Duple. Second hand vehicles brought the total number of LHs operated up to nearly 300. Between 1972 and 1982 Lawrence Wilson & Son bought 3 LH and 10 LHL chassis which were fitted with panel van bodies. The first three LHLs were completed by Marsden and
224-587: The 1958 type certification treaty, coach (that is vehicle of type M2 or M3) type certification is regulated by regulation number 107 from the UNECE. In the U.S., commercial drivers of motorcoaches are regulated by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). A representative selection of vehicles currently (or recently) in use in different parts of the world. A selection of vehicles in use in different parts of
252-457: The LH were Walter Alexander , Duple , East Lancashire , Marshall , Northern Counties , Weymann and Willowbrook . The only Weymann body was fitted to the first LHS6L built (LHX003) to the orders of Western Welsh . Weymann had been closed in 1965 and the body was originally mounted on an Albion Nimbus delivered to Western Welsh in 1961; modifications included extending the body wheelbase to match
280-422: The bare essentials such as storage and restrooms. Coaches typically have only a single, narrow door, but some can have two doors, as an increased loading time is acceptable due to infrequent stops. Some characteristics include: Coaches, like buses, may be fully built by integrated manufacturers, or a separate chassis consisting of only an engine, wheels and basic frame may be delivered to a coachwork factory for
308-482: The chassis and fitting a Lodekka style grille to provide cooling for the radiator. WWOC numbered their LHS 1 and registered it MBO1F. It later passed to Thornes of Selby and is currently preserved. For the standard LH the 41-seat Plaxton coach and 43-seat ECW bus were most widely used; the bus bodies manufactured in Belfast by Alexander for Ulsterbus had 45 seats, East Midland Motor Services' ten 1969 buses were
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#1732782983307336-496: The company named, however many took additional vehicles second-hand from other operators. The code following the chassis model 'type' column shows the number of seats. The prefix B represents a bus body, C a coach or DP a dual purpose vehicle. The suffix F shows a single front door, D shows dual front and centre doors. Alexander Midland operated 41 LHs with Walter Alexander Y-type bodies and Perkins engines in Scotland. All but
364-707: The driver's view when reversing. Crosville operated services in Wales and north west England. They bought 16 Perkins-engined vehicles in 1969 and 40 Leyland with engines from 1975. Eastern Counties Omnibus Company took 50 LH and 5 LHS buses between 1968 and 1972, these were all Perkins-engined and the LHS6Ps had been ordered by Luton Corporation and delivered to United Counties Omnibus Company with registrations XXE131-5H, UCOC did not want them so ECOC took them on, re-registering them with Norfolk, rather than Luton marks. Eastern Counties did not take any more new LHs until 1977 when
392-553: The early years of the 20th century. The first "motor coaches" were purchased by operators of those horse-drawn vehicles in the early 20th century by operators such as Royal Blue Coach Services , who purchased their first charabanc in 1913 and were running 72 coaches by 1926. As they hold passengers for significant periods of time on long journeys, coaches are designed for comfort. They can vary considerably in quality: some higher-specification coaches feature luxury seats, air conditioning , and refreshments, while others may only have
420-582: The first gear was blocked off to make driving easier in traffic. In 1976 95 full length vehicles with automatic transmissions and narrow bodies were purchased. The 7 ft 6in bodies were not only because of narrow roads on some routes, but also due to the restricted space at Kingston garage in Surrey which prevented the Leyland National being deployed there. LHSs were classified by London Transport as BS; full length LHs were classified BL. United Automobile Services had five coaches with Plaxton Elite bodies, but
448-561: The first horse-drawn mail coaches in Europe since Roman times in 1650, and as they started in the town of Kocs, the use of these mail coaches gave rise to the term "coach". Stagecoaches (drawn by horses) were used for transport between cities from about 1500 in Great Britain until displaced by the arrival of the railways. One of the earliest motorized vehicles was the charabanc , which was used for short journeys and excursions until
476-413: The last three were coaches. Bristol Omnibus Company received six LH buses in 1971 with semi-automatic gearboxes. A further 110 (with manual gearboxes) were ordered for delivery between 1975 and 1980. A few more buses were acquired second hand including two LHSs from London Country. NB 351-356 were initially B44F but rebuilt with one less seat to allow a window to be inserted in the rear panel to improve
504-504: The name from horse-drawn carriages and stagecoaches that carried passengers, luggage, and mail, modern motor coaches are almost always high-floor buses, with separate luggage hold mounted below the passenger compartment. In contrast to transit buses, motor coaches typically feature forward-facing seating, with no provision for standing. Other accommodations may include onboard restrooms, televisions, and overhead luggage space. Horse-drawn chariots and carriages ("coaches") were used by
532-512: The needs of different operators. Bodies could be fitted out as buses, coaches or dual purpose buses which could be used for coach services when traffic demanded. Bus bodies usually came from the Eastern Coach Works (ECW), which was owned by the same Transport Holding Company . This was a government-owned company but Leyland had acquired a 25% share in 1965. Plaxton bodies were preferred for coaches. Other manufacturers of bodies for
560-541: The only ones with Willowbrook bodies, as built they had 45 seats but with a 3+2 seating arrangement in three rows forward of the rear bench, making room for a pram pen, they were also unusual in carrying no grille badge. The LHS was produced as both buses and coaches with 26 to 35 seats. The LHL had up to 53 seats as a coach or 55 as a bus. Between 1975 and 1982 Vanplan built eight with delivery van bodies. Altogether nearly 2,000 LHs were built: 1,505 LH, 174 LHL and 308 LHS. The following lists only include vehicles ordered by
588-627: The overhang ahead of the front wheels allowing driver-only operation with the same person taking the fares and issuing tickets as passengers boarded. A small number of LH's, for Lancashire United Transport , Hants & Dorset and the Midland General group were also fitted with a central exit doorway. The radiator was positioned at the front of the chassis. The suspension was by half-elliptical leaf springs, although BCV had offered pneumatic suspension on heavier buses since 1962. Bodies were fitted by different manufacturers, who adapted them to
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#1732782983307616-518: The remainder by Vanplan. They were used for delivering Wilson's Silver Cross brand of prams. One further LH (CUT 730K in 1972) was fitted out as a racing car transporter for Wheatcroft of Leicester. A former Hants & Dorset standard LH (NEL 847M of 1973) was fitted with additional flanged wheels in 1980 to allow it to operate on railway lines. It was owned by the North East London Polytechnic of Dagenham and some work
644-442: The remaining 218 LHs ordered for this fleet were standard ECW bus bodies for services in north-east England. A number of second-hand buses were also acquired. Much of south west England is rural in nature and many narrow roads mean that Western National needed a large fleet of small buses. In 1969 the associated Southern National fleet was merged with Western National. The coach services of both companies were mostly operated under
672-616: The then maximum width, could be fitted, wide-bodied LHs have the wheels slightly inset in the wheelarches as a result. The bus was available with a choice of six-cylinder diesel engines, either the Leyland O.400 (later replaced by the Leyland O.401) or the Perkins H6.354. The 5.8 litre H6.354 produced 101 bhp; the 6.54 litre O.400 had a peak output of 125 bhp whilst the 0.401 (from 1971) produced 138 bhp. The usual gearbox
700-479: The wealthy and powerful where the roads were of a high enough standard from possibly 3000 BC. In Hungary , during the reign of King Matthias Corvinus in the 15th century, the wheelwrights of Kocs began to build a horse-drawn vehicle with steel-spring suspension. This "cart of Kocs" as the Hungarians called it ( Hungarian : kocsi szekér ) soon became popular all over Europe. The imperial post service employed
728-410: Was a Turner-Clark synchromesh five-speed model with overdrive top gear. The front and rear axles were sourced from Leyland's Bathgate factory. Some buses were fitted with a Self-Changing Gears semi-automatic transmission and power steering. The engine was positioned in the centre of the chassis but its relatively high position meant that several steps were needed in the entrance. This was arranged in
756-719: Was done by Lucas Aerospace. It was tested on the West Somerset Railway between Bishops Lydeard and Crowcombe Heathfield in August 1980. Single-decker bus Too Many Requests If you report this error to the Wikimedia System Administrators, please include the details below. Request from 172.68.168.132 via cp1112 cp1112, Varnish XID 948838005 Upstream caches: cp1112 int Error: 429, Too Many Requests at Thu, 28 Nov 2024 08:36:23 GMT Coach (bus) A coach (also known as
784-431: Was the only Scottish Bus Group company to order LHs apart from Alexander Midland when they took 34 Perkins-engined LHs finished by Walter Alexander as Y-type coaches. Hants & Dorset and the associated Wilts & Dorset company were unusual in specifying dual-door configuration for their early LHs. Buses in the 521–530 series were allocated to Wilts & Dorset, the remainder to Hants & Dorset. Lincolnshire
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