Vintage Bus Tour

From Chester Wiki

[edit] The vintage bus

The vintage bus seen driving around Chester since June 2005 was built in 1964 as a single-deck Bedford coach for Wessex Coaches in Bristol. It was redesigned and rebuilt in 1982 by E. L. Farrar in St Austell, Cornwall and fitted with the present body, which is a replica of a London General Omnibus Company B-Type motorbus. Only 3 were built and Chester is the proud owner of one of them.

The B-Type, introduced in 1910, was one of the earliest double-deck motorbuses built in the world, and was built to replace the remaining horse-drawn buses of the period. Its design was considered revolutionary at the time, and by 1913, 2,500 of these buses had been built. Its designer was the company’s chief engineer, Frank Searle, who later went on to become the Managing Director of the Rover car company.

At the outbreak of world war one in 1914, many were taken out of service and adapted for military use to take troops to the war front in France, as field ambulances and even as mobile pigeon lofts for messaging pigeons. So versatile were these vehicles that they remained steadfastly reliable, even in the most extreme and harsh conditions. Following the war, the B-type continued to give reliable service to the travelling public of London, remaining in service until 1927.

The bus has been named: “Pride Of Chester” and an official launch and naming ceremony took place in September 2005. The vehicle has a total passenger capacity of 34 (18 upstairs and 16 downstairs).

[edit] Tours

Tours depart from the coach stop outside the Chester Visitor Centre. The first tour is at 10am and then usually every hour, on the hour with the last tour at 4pm. This can vary depending on passenger numbers, weather and traffic conditions. The standard tour takes between 35 and 45 minutes.

The route takes in various sights, including:

• The Groves
• County Hall
• Chester Castle
• Military Museum
• Grosvenor Museum
• Chester Roodee (Racecourse)
• Water Tower
• The Locks
• The Walls
• Watergate
• The Rows
• The Eastgate Clock
• The Cathedral
• The Roman Amphitheatre
• City Baths
• The Grosvenor Mall Shopping Centre

[edit] Tickets

Tickets for a Standard City Tour cost £6 for adults, £5 for concessions, £2.50 for children and £12.50 for a family (2 adults and 2 children). Tickets are available from the Visitor Centre.