spaceship

Leyland PD3/6 STP 995 number 123 Owned by: Working Omnibus Museum Project Ltd This is the sole surviving example of a “Portsmouth spaceship”. In 1959, it became apparent that the existing PD2 Orion bodied buses were unable to cope with the increasing passenger loadings from the new estates then being built at Leigh Park and Paulsgrove. Coupled with the plan to replace the trolley buses, CPPTD specified a fleet of then new to the market Leyland Atlanteans, of which 236 is an example. The only problem being that everyone wanted Atlanteans at the time and the delivery schedule ran into several years. As a short term solution, a fleet of 10 Leyland PD3/6 chassis with bodies by Metro-Cammell were ordered. Although looking similar to the older PD2’s of which our fleet number 112 is an example, there are many detail differences. The most obvious of which is the additional length as these were 30 foot vehicles. Also notice that these vehicles were fitted with sliding vents in the windows - unlike the earlier vehicles which had retained the rather archaic half-drops. The driver’s cab now has a sliding door, rather than being hinged. In the end, the order was modified and only 5 PD3s were ever delivered to CPPTD. The crews immediately named them “spaceships” - they were the largest vehicles ever operated in the City prior to the arrival of the Southdown “Queen Marys” and later the Atlanteans. 123 was delivered with a grey roof with 36 upper deck seats and 28 lower. The grey roof was repainted white in 1961 and the bus upseated to 70 seats to cope with ever increasing loadings in March 1962 - this required an additional emergency exit to be fitted in place of an offside lower deck window. After withdrawal from service, it was sold to the Transport and Road Research Laboratory in Berkshire and delivered to that organisation in January 1976, but not before various modifications had been made at Eastney depot. These included closing off the rear entrance and building a flat platform on the roof. Sold by TRRL at auction in November 1985 to the Newham Historic Vehicle Preservation Group who undertook the restoration back to original condition, it passed to the sole ownership of Alan Wilsonham in 1999 who generously donated it to CPPTD.

Delivered 1959 as fleet number 123 Upseated to 70 seats in March 1962 Withdrawn from service, Sept 1973 Sold to TRRL in 1974 Sold into Preservation Nov 1985 Acquired by WOMP October 2010