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Leyland Titan (B15)
Encyclopedia
The Leyland Titan was a model of double-decker bus
produced by the Leyland Truck & Bus division of British Leyland from 1977 until 1984, almost exclusively for London Transport
.
, Daimler Fleetline
and Bristol VRT
. Following the success of the single-deck Leyland National
, it was decided from the outset that the vehicle would be very standardised and of integral construction. This allowed more flexibility in the location of mechanical components and allowed a reduced step height. The move away from body-on-chassis construction caused concern for the bodybuilders who had already lost market to the Leyland National. Talks regarding licensing agreements were held with Alexander
and Northern Counties, both major suppliers to their respective local markets, but no agreements were reached.
Leyland saw London Transport as a major market so the specification was heavily influenced by LT's preferences. LT was suffering problems with its DMS class of Daimler/Leyland Fleetline
one-man-operated double-deckers and wanted rather more input into the design than they had had with the DMS. Leyland too wanted to gain more operator input than had been the case with the Leyland National.
Five prototypes (B15.01-B15.05) were constructed in 1975-1977, two of which were evaluated in London.
would build the first 100 vehicles, with production then transferring to AEC in Southall
. This caused industrial relations difficulties at Park Royal and some 200 skilled craftspeople left. Production was very slow and the first vehicle was not delivered until August 1978. In October 1978 Leyland announced the AEC factory would close, with the intent of keeping Titan production at Park Royal. The very slow production rate continued, causing cancellation of a number of existing orders. The industrial relations problems continued as Leyland sought to replace the skilled staff who had left with semi-skilled workers. Finally, Leyland announced in October 1979 that Park Royal would close in May 1980. Once this decision had been made and a productivity-related redundancy package negotiated, production increased dramatically. Whereas Park Royal had taken 14 months to build the first 100 vehicles, it took seven months to build the final 150.
Efforts to transfer production to ECW
in Lowestoft
failed, again due to industrial relations problems, so it was finally decided that production would recommence at an expanded facility in Workington
, which also built the Leyland National
. It took almost a year to expand the facility, transfer the jigs and tooling from Park Royal and recommence production. The continued delays caused the loss of further orders.
Besides the production difficulties, other aspects of the Titan specification, which was strongly influenced by London Transport, were unpopular. Power hydraulic brakes, a fixed height of 14 in 5 in (4.39 m) and an inability to specify local bodywork all limited Titan's appeal. Outside London, Greater Manchester PTE bought 15 (against an original order of 190) and West Midlands PTE
bought five (against an original order of 80) which were later sold to London Transport. The 1978 British Motor Show at the National Exhibition Centre
in Birmingham
featured the first vehicles for both operators. Reading Transport
bought two Park Royal Titans to full London specification and a further 10 from Workington, five of which had high-ratio rear axles and coach seats for express services into London.
One was exported to Hong Kong
and became China Motor Bus
's TC1 (CD1213). A 36 feet (11 m) long version of the Titan had been planned for this operator but that too was cancelled as a result of the difficulties at Park Royal and two Leyland Victory Mk2
s were built instead. A demonstrator built in 1982 failed to secure any further orders, operators preferring the flexibility and lower cost of the Leyland Olympian
. This vehicle (registered VAO 488Y) was eventually sold to a Scottish independent operator, Ian Glass of Haddington.
London's orders were split between the Titan and the MCW Metrobus
but production of Titan for London only was proving uneconomic. Strong pressure was brought to bear to increase the Titan share of the London orders. As a result, Leyland received the entire order for 275 vehicles in 1982. This led to layoffs at MCW
. The 1983 order also favoured Leyland, with 210 Titan and 150 Metrobus. The decision was made to end production upon completion of a final batch of 240 ordered in 1984. The final Titan, LT fleet number T1096, entered service in October 1984.
The orders from London Transport were as follows:
The first production Titans were delivered in August 1978 and entered service at Hornchurch
in December 1978 on routes 165, 246 and 252. The Titan's London Transport service career saw it working in the eastern and south eastern half of the capital, though a surplus of the type following tendering reverses in the later 1980s saw Titans spread to some north London garages. Withdrawals began in December 1992, with large numbers passing to other operators, including Merseybus, Oxford Bus Company
and Kinchbus
. Further buses remained on London work under the ownership of independent contractors such as London Suburban Buses, London & Country, BTS and London Coaches (later Atlas Bus).
Upon the privatisation of the London Buses Limited subsidiaries, the remaining Titans were distributed between London Central
, Stagecoach East London
and Stagecoach Selkent
. The latter pair began cascading their Titans away almost immediately, spreading them throughout the country. Stagecoach East London last operated Titans in September 2001 and Selkent's were withdrawn in November 2001, leaving London Central with a small number of spare buses which were eventually whittled down. Amid a small ceremony, the last one, T1018 was retired from route 40 on 19 June 2003.
In London the Low Emission Zone saw off the last Blue Triangle
and Sullivan Buses
Titans.
Outside London just a few now remain in service, particularly with independent operators. MASS Engineering
in South Yorkshire and Nu-Venture
in Kent have substantial fleets. However, Stagecoach Group
, who acquired a large number of the type by buying East London and Selkent in 1994, has only a handful left in service, in use as school buses with Stagecoach West Scotland
.
Few Titans are preserved, perhaps because compared with other types (e.g. Atlantean, Fleetline, Bristol VRT) it is a far more complex design, with the electrical system in particular being known as troublesome.
However Titans were exeptionally robustly built to cope with the foreseen hard work of London operation. At one point the cost of dismantling a time expired Titan exceeded its ultimate scrap value leading to problems for anyone who wanted to dispose of one.
Double-decker bus
A double-decker bus is a bus that has two storeys or 'decks'. Global usage of this type of bus is more common in outer touring than in its intra-urban transportion role. Double-decker buses are also commonly found in certain parts of Europe, Asia, and former British colonies and protectorates...
produced by the Leyland Truck & Bus division of British Leyland from 1977 until 1984, almost exclusively for London Transport
Greater London Council
The Greater London Council was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986. It replaced the earlier London County Council which had covered a much smaller area...
.
Development
The Titan was conceived in 1973 as project B15 and was intended as a replacement for the Leyland AtlanteanLeyland Atlantean
The Leyland Atlantean is a model of double-decker bus built by Leyland in the United Kingdom from 1958 to 1986....
, Daimler Fleetline
Daimler Fleetline
The Daimler Fleetline is a rear-engined double-decker bus chassis built between 1960 and 1973 in Coventry, Warwickshire, England, and from 1973 until 1980 in Farington, Lancashire, England. However, the last complete vehicle did not enter service until 1983...
and Bristol VRT
Bristol VR
The Bristol VR was Bristol's rear-engined bus chassis, designed as a competitor to the Leyland Atlantean and Daimler Fleetline.-Development:...
. Following the success of the single-deck Leyland National
Leyland National
The Leyland National is a British single-deck bus built in large quantities between 1972 and 1985. It was developed as a joint project between two UK nationalised industries - the National Bus Company and British Leyland. Buses were constructed at a specially built factory at the Lillyhall...
, it was decided from the outset that the vehicle would be very standardised and of integral construction. This allowed more flexibility in the location of mechanical components and allowed a reduced step height. The move away from body-on-chassis construction caused concern for the bodybuilders who had already lost market to the Leyland National. Talks regarding licensing agreements were held with Alexander
Walter Alexander Coachbuilders
Walter Alexander Coachbuilders was a Scottish bus coachbuilder and operater based in Falkirk.-History:Walter Alexander, notice a lack expasion by the Falkirk and District Tramways Company's especially in to Grangemouth which never hdd a tram line. In 1913 Alexander's Motor Service was created to...
and Northern Counties, both major suppliers to their respective local markets, but no agreements were reached.
Leyland saw London Transport as a major market so the specification was heavily influenced by LT's preferences. LT was suffering problems with its DMS class of Daimler/Leyland Fleetline
Daimler Fleetline
The Daimler Fleetline is a rear-engined double-decker bus chassis built between 1960 and 1973 in Coventry, Warwickshire, England, and from 1973 until 1980 in Farington, Lancashire, England. However, the last complete vehicle did not enter service until 1983...
one-man-operated double-deckers and wanted rather more input into the design than they had had with the DMS. Leyland too wanted to gain more operator input than had been the case with the Leyland National.
Specification
The Titan was offered as one size — 9.56 metres (31.4 ft) long by 2.5 metres (8.2 ft) wide by 4.4 metres (14.4 ft) high. The main body structure was aluminium and the body was assembled using 'Avdelok' rivets similar to the Leyland National. Single-door or dual-door layouts were offered, with a number of options for the location of the staircase. Mechanically, independent front suspension and a drop-centre rear axle were used, with air suspension and power hydraulic brakes as standard. The prototype engine was a turbocharged version of the Leyland 500 series, although this was changed to Gardner 6LXB for production as a result of customer preference and concerns over fuel economy and reliability of the 500 series. The Leyland TL11 engine was available for later production versions. The engine was mounted vertically at the rear, with the radiator located separately in a compartment above the engine. This led to an unusual off-centre square rear window. The overall design was advanced for the time and improved on noise and emission requirements by considerable margins.Production
The Titan name, previously used for a front-engined double-decker, was revived for production in June 1977. It was intended that Park Royal VehiclesPark Royal Vehicles
Dating its origins back to 1889, Park Royal Vehicles along with its Leeds-based subsidiary Charles H. Roe was one of Britain's leading coachbuilders and bus manufacturers based at Park Royal, west London, UK.-Associated Commercial Vehicles:...
would build the first 100 vehicles, with production then transferring to AEC in Southall
Southall
Southall is a large suburban district of west London, England, and part of the London Borough of Ealing. It is situated west of Charing Cross. Neighbouring places include Yeading, Hayes, Hanwell, Heston, Hounslow, Greenford and Northolt...
. This caused industrial relations difficulties at Park Royal and some 200 skilled craftspeople left. Production was very slow and the first vehicle was not delivered until August 1978. In October 1978 Leyland announced the AEC factory would close, with the intent of keeping Titan production at Park Royal. The very slow production rate continued, causing cancellation of a number of existing orders. The industrial relations problems continued as Leyland sought to replace the skilled staff who had left with semi-skilled workers. Finally, Leyland announced in October 1979 that Park Royal would close in May 1980. Once this decision had been made and a productivity-related redundancy package negotiated, production increased dramatically. Whereas Park Royal had taken 14 months to build the first 100 vehicles, it took seven months to build the final 150.
Efforts to transfer production to ECW
Eastern Coach Works
Eastern Coach Works Ltd was a bus and railbus body building company based in Lowestoft, England.-History:The company can trace its roots back to 1912, when United Automobile Services was founded in the town to run bus services. United began a coach building business at the Lowestoft site in 1920...
in Lowestoft
Lowestoft
Lowestoft is a town in the English county of Suffolk. The town is on the North Sea coast and is the most easterly point of the United Kingdom. It is north-east of London, north-east of Ipswich and south-east of Norwich...
failed, again due to industrial relations problems, so it was finally decided that production would recommence at an expanded facility in Workington
Workington
Workington is a town, civil parish and port on the west coast of Cumbria, England, at the mouth of the River Derwent. Lying within the Borough of Allerdale, Workington is southwest of Carlisle, west of Cockermouth, and southwest of Maryport...
, which also built the Leyland National
Leyland National
The Leyland National is a British single-deck bus built in large quantities between 1972 and 1985. It was developed as a joint project between two UK nationalised industries - the National Bus Company and British Leyland. Buses were constructed at a specially built factory at the Lillyhall...
. It took almost a year to expand the facility, transfer the jigs and tooling from Park Royal and recommence production. The continued delays caused the loss of further orders.
Besides the production difficulties, other aspects of the Titan specification, which was strongly influenced by London Transport, were unpopular. Power hydraulic brakes, a fixed height of 14 in 5 in (4.39 m) and an inability to specify local bodywork all limited Titan's appeal. Outside London, Greater Manchester PTE bought 15 (against an original order of 190) and West Midlands PTE
West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive
The West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive , sometimes known as Centro, is a local government organisation responsible for certain transport services in the West Midlands county in England....
bought five (against an original order of 80) which were later sold to London Transport. The 1978 British Motor Show at the National Exhibition Centre
National Exhibition Centre
The National Exhibition Centre is an exhibition centre in Birmingham, England. It is near junction 6 of the M42 motorway, and is adjacent to Birmingham International Airport and Birmingham International railway station. It has 20 interconnected halls, set in grounds of 628 acres making it the...
in Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
featured the first vehicles for both operators. Reading Transport
Reading Transport
Reading Transport Ltd is a bus operator serving the towns of Reading, Newbury and the surrounding area in the English county of Berkshire. The company is wholly owned by Reading Borough Council and operates under the brands Reading Buses, Newbury Buses and Goldline Travel...
bought two Park Royal Titans to full London specification and a further 10 from Workington, five of which had high-ratio rear axles and coach seats for express services into London.
One was exported to Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
and became China Motor Bus
China Motor Bus
China Motor Bus Company Ltd. , often abbreviated as CMB, was the first motor bus company in Hong Kong, and was responsible for the introduction of double-decker buses to Hong Kong Island....
's TC1 (CD1213). A 36 feet (11 m) long version of the Titan had been planned for this operator but that too was cancelled as a result of the difficulties at Park Royal and two Leyland Victory Mk2
Leyland Victory Mk2
Leyland Victory Mk2 is a front-engine double-decker bus chassis that was built by Leyland between 1978 and 1981. Like its competitor Dennis Jubilant, Volvo Ailsa B55, it was specifically designed for contemporary operating environment in Hong Kong.The chassis was developed from the Guy Victory J,...
s were built instead. A demonstrator built in 1982 failed to secure any further orders, operators preferring the flexibility and lower cost of the Leyland Olympian
Leyland Olympian
The Leyland Olympian was a double-decker bus built by British Leyland/Leyland Bus in the United Kingdom from 1980 to 1993. It was the last Leyland bus model in production before the demise of Leyland Bus.-Construction:...
. This vehicle (registered VAO 488Y) was eventually sold to a Scottish independent operator, Ian Glass of Haddington.
London's orders were split between the Titan and the MCW Metrobus
MCW Metrobus
The MCW Metrobus is a double decker bus model manufactured by MCW from 1977 until 1989, with over 4,000 examples built. The original MkI model was superseded by the MkII model in 1981/1982, although production of the original MkI continued for London Transport until 1985...
but production of Titan for London only was proving uneconomic. Strong pressure was brought to bear to increase the Titan share of the London orders. As a result, Leyland received the entire order for 275 vehicles in 1982. This led to layoffs at MCW
Metro Cammell Weymann
Metro Cammell Weymann was once a major player in transportation manufacturing in the UK and Europe. It was formed in 1932 by Weymann Motor Bodies Ltd and Metro Cammell's bus bodybuilding division to produce bus bodies....
. The 1983 order also favoured Leyland, with 210 Titan and 150 Metrobus. The decision was made to end production upon completion of a final batch of 240 ordered in 1984. The final Titan, LT fleet number T1096, entered service in October 1984.
The Titan in London
- 1979: 100 (T1–100)
- 1980: 150 (T101–250) — reduced from 250 due to industrial relations difficulties at Park Royal.
- 1981: 150 (T251–400)
- 1982: 275 (T401–675)
- 1983: 210 (T676–885)
- 1984: 240 (T886–1125)
The first production Titans were delivered in August 1978 and entered service at Hornchurch
Hornchurch
Hornchurch is a large suburban town in England, and part of the London Borough of Havering. Hornchurch is in North-East London .It is located east-northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the locally important district centres identified in the London Plan. It comprises a number of shopping...
in December 1978 on routes 165, 246 and 252. The Titan's London Transport service career saw it working in the eastern and south eastern half of the capital, though a surplus of the type following tendering reverses in the later 1980s saw Titans spread to some north London garages. Withdrawals began in December 1992, with large numbers passing to other operators, including Merseybus, Oxford Bus Company
Oxford Bus Company
Oxford Bus Company is a bus operator serving the city and surrounding area of Oxford, England and is the trading name of City of Oxford Motor Services Ltd. It is now a subsidiary of the Go-Ahead Group...
and Kinchbus
Kinchbus
Kinchbus is a bus operator based in Loughborough. It was originally an independent company established by Gilbert Kinch, but is now owned by the Wellglade Group. It operates various local services around Loughborough, Route 2 from Leicester to Loughborough and Skylink from Derby to Loughborough...
. Further buses remained on London work under the ownership of independent contractors such as London Suburban Buses, London & Country, BTS and London Coaches (later Atlas Bus).
Upon the privatisation of the London Buses Limited subsidiaries, the remaining Titans were distributed between London Central
London Central
London Central is one of many operators of London Buses. It was established in late 1988 as one of 12 operating subsidiaries of London Buses Limited , and was privatised to the Go-Ahead Group in September 1994...
, Stagecoach East London
East London (bus company)
East London is one of many operators of bus services contracted to Transport for London, mainly in the east of the city. Its legal name is East London Bus & Coach Company Ltd, and it is currently owned largely by Stagecoach Group, as part of Stagecoach London.-History:East London was established in...
and Stagecoach Selkent
Selkent
Selkent, or the South East London & Kent Bus Company Ltd, is one of many operators of bus services contracted to Transport for London. It is currently owned by Stagecoach Group, as part of Stagecoach London....
. The latter pair began cascading their Titans away almost immediately, spreading them throughout the country. Stagecoach East London last operated Titans in September 2001 and Selkent's were withdrawn in November 2001, leaving London Central with a small number of spare buses which were eventually whittled down. Amid a small ceremony, the last one, T1018 was retired from route 40 on 19 June 2003.
Titans today
Blue Triangle
Blue Triangle is one of many operators of London Buses, it is based in Rainham and is part of Go-Ahead London. It is the operator of the East London Transit service.-History:...
and Sullivan Buses
Sullivan Buses
Sullivan Buses is a bus operating company based in South Mimms, Hertfordshire, England. Founded in 1999, it operates local bus services in and around Hertfordshire including school services; rail replacement bus services in and near London; bus links in Surrey to and from Thorpe Park; and vehicle...
Titans.
Outside London just a few now remain in service, particularly with independent operators. MASS Engineering
MASS Engineering
MASS Engineering and BrightBus, which is officially MAS Special Engineering Ltd, is a Sheffield-based company engaged in the manufacture of bodies for motor vehicles and school bus operation...
in South Yorkshire and Nu-Venture
Nu-Venture
Nu-Venture Coaches Ltd is an Aylesford, Kent-based bus company. Established in 1960s as a coach company, Nu-Venture once operated coach tour holidays all over Europe, and, in the 1980s, a London commuter service, but coach hire activities ceased in 2010....
in Kent have substantial fleets. However, Stagecoach Group
Stagecoach Group
Stagecoach Group plc is an international transport group operating buses, trains, trams, express coaches and ferries. The group was founded in 1980 by the current chairman, Sir Brian Souter, his sister, Ann Gloag, and her former husband Robin...
, who acquired a large number of the type by buying East London and Selkent in 1994, has only a handful left in service, in use as school buses with Stagecoach West Scotland
Stagecoach West Scotland
Stagecoach West Scotland is an operating region of Stagecoach UK Bus, comprising Western Buses Ltd and Stagecoach Glasgow Ltd, based in Ayr, Scotland.-Operation:...
.
Few Titans are preserved, perhaps because compared with other types (e.g. Atlantean, Fleetline, Bristol VRT) it is a far more complex design, with the electrical system in particular being known as troublesome.
However Titans were exeptionally robustly built to cope with the foreseen hard work of London operation. At one point the cost of dismantling a time expired Titan exceeded its ultimate scrap value leading to problems for anyone who wanted to dispose of one.
External links
- London's Leyland Titan Breathes Its Last - The London Bus Page, 19 June 2003
- London's Titans - Where they are now