Steam bus 'Elizabeth'
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth is a steam bus
that operates in the English seaside town of Whitby
.
The vehicle was created in 2002, when a tourism transport operator, the Northern Star Motor Carriage Company, converted a 1931 Sentinel
steam-powered DG6P steam wagon
into a 30-seat bus, by adding a charabanc
-style body. It is used to take people on a tour of the town, providing up to ten trips per day over the summer months. It is the only steam bus in revenue-earning service in the world and has become something of a tourist attraction in its own right.
It has two gears, chain transmission, six wheels and ten pneumatic tyres, and a body made from white ash and mahogany. It was a flatbed lorry and then a tar sprayer in its original commercial life, before being bought from a scrapyard for preservation in 1962.
Before the bus could carry fare-paying passengers, it had to undergo a 35° tilt test and required an amendment to the Road Traffic Act since the exhaust was not sited at the rear of the vehicle. In November 2011, it took part in London's Lord Mayor's Show
.
Steam bus
A steam bus is a bus powered by a steam engine. Early steam-powered vehicles designed for carrying passengers were more usually known as steam carriages, although this term was sometimes used to describe other early experimental vehicles too.-History:...
that operates in the English seaside town of Whitby
Whitby
Whitby is a seaside town, port and civil parish in the Scarborough borough of North Yorkshire, England. Situated on the east coast of Yorkshire at the mouth of the River Esk, Whitby has a combined maritime, mineral and tourist heritage, and is home to the ruins of Whitby Abbey where Caedmon, the...
.
The vehicle was created in 2002, when a tourism transport operator, the Northern Star Motor Carriage Company, converted a 1931 Sentinel
Sentinel Waggon Works
Sentinel Waggon Works Ltd was a British company based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire that made steam-powered lorries, railway locomotives, and later, diesel engined lorries and locomotives.-Alley & MacLellan, Sentinel Works, Jessie Street Glasgow:...
steam-powered DG6P steam wagon
Steam wagon
A steam wagon is a steam-powered road vehicle for carrying freight. It was the earliest form of lorry and came in two basic forms: overtype and undertype – the distinction being the position of the engine relative to the boiler...
into a 30-seat bus, by adding a charabanc
Charabanc
A charabanc or "char-à-banc" is a type of horse-drawn vehicle or early motor coach, usually open-topped, common in Britain during the early part of the 20th century. It was especially popular for sight-seeing or "works outings" to the country or the seaside, organised by businesses once a year...
-style body. It is used to take people on a tour of the town, providing up to ten trips per day over the summer months. It is the only steam bus in revenue-earning service in the world and has become something of a tourist attraction in its own right.
It has two gears, chain transmission, six wheels and ten pneumatic tyres, and a body made from white ash and mahogany. It was a flatbed lorry and then a tar sprayer in its original commercial life, before being bought from a scrapyard for preservation in 1962.
Before the bus could carry fare-paying passengers, it had to undergo a 35° tilt test and required an amendment to the Road Traffic Act since the exhaust was not sited at the rear of the vehicle. In November 2011, it took part in London's Lord Mayor's Show
Lord Mayor's Show
The Lord Mayor's Show is one of the longest established and best known annual events in London which dates back to 1535. The Lord Mayor in question is that of the City of London, the historic centre of London that is now the metropolis's financial district, informally known as the Square Mile...
.