Sligo Bus

[Kirley]

Can any of you Bus Experts tell me the Make, Type, Service years, etc. of this bus and is there a model of it available?

 

[Weshty]

It's an E Class. Went into service in early '60's and lasted over 20 years.

Based on the Leyland Leopard L2 chassis and the Leyland O600 engine. It was the last CIE single Deck design and the last CIE to have a roof luggage carrier.

It was lighter than its predecessor by 11cwt at 7ton 7cwt, very fuel efficent and proved to be very suitable to the irish rural road system at the time.

[Tarabuses]

There has not been a finished model made of the E class but there have been two kits. The first was by Fanfare Models (later released by Ryanbus) and the second by Jim Poots. Neither would be available now unless found second hand.

[ttc0169]

Can any of you Bus Experts tell me the Make' date=' Type, Service years, etc. of this bus and is there a model of it available?

 

Hi Kieran,

These are some of my versions of the E class buses which are the Jim Poots kits.

 

 

 

Standard E class

 

 

 

Schools version

 

 

 

And the unique Ballina based Ambulance version.

[jhb171achill]

I remember them well..... I recall travelling in one somewhere near Swinford in Co Mayo. On a narrow stone-walled road (as usual back then, mid 70s) it clipped wing mirrors with a van coming the other way, despite both trying to get as far into the ditch as they could. I sat in the second seat from the front. In front of me, the two front seats either side of the aisle had boxes of day-old chicks on one, and bundles of newspapers for shops on the other! The heady days of "bus parcels traffic"....

[Weshty]

I remember them well..... I recall travelling in one somewhere near Swinford in Co Mayo. On a narrow stone-walled road (as usual back then, mid 70s) it clipped wing mirrors with a van coming the other way, despite both trying to get as far into the ditch as they could. I sat in the second seat from the front. In front of me, the two front seats either side of the aisle had boxes of day-old chicks on one, and bundles of newspapers for shops on the other! The heady days of "bus parcels traffic"....

 

I remember it only too well myself. My gran could step out of her shop in Charleville, hail down the bus, give a parcel to the driver and 25 minutes (and one phonecall) later we collected it outside Thompson's Newsagent in Mallow. And this was in the late 70's!

[Broithe]

I remember it only too well myself. My gran could step out of her shop in Charleville, hail down the bus, give a parcel to the driver and 25 minutes (and one phonecall) later we collected it outside Thompson's Newsagent in Mallow. And this was in the late 70's!

 

I took a Kavanagh bus into Portlaoise in the late 90s and got roped into handing the parcels out as we went along..

[Weshty]

I took a Kavanagh bus into Portlaoise in the late 90s and got roped into handing the parcels out as we went along..

 

Wow. Amazed that it went on until that recently.

 

No doubt those Elfs from safety were involved the practice stopping. But, I stand to be corrected.

[Kirley]

Thanks Guys for the information, pictures and memories!