Bus Photo Gallery

This page is dedicated to Northern General Tranport and Stagecoach Byker

Photograph courtesy of Brian Cheyney

Fleet No 731

My involvment with buses began in July 1969 when I decided to take up a new profession which would involve driving and like every new avenue you start at the bottom I started working as a conductor at first and then I passed my psv test in November 1969 letting me become a driver for the Northern General Transport Company, and later City Busways. This new career would last for thirty one years and one that I would enjoy until my health forced my retirement in the year 2000. I like to think that I excelled in everything that I did and that goes for driving too I had to know what kind of driver I was and so I entered the driver of the year competition in 1985-7 and in 1986 I won the Northern area final by beating drivers from sixteen depots of the Northern General Group. I went to the Grand Final in Blackpool and came tenth overall. These next photos are of my trophies and of me receiving the cup for becoming the Northern Driver of the Year from Mr Ballinger the then General Manager of Northern General Transport.

In that time I met a great many people but through being contacted and told the the story of this man I believe he deserves a place on this page. To any old Northern employees that worked at Bensham Depot coming upon this site you will regonise the depot foreman.

Ralphy Clydesdale

In The time On The buses,These People I hold in High regard

Alan Ley

Keith Nicholson

Alan Ward

Tom Pilkington

George McKendrick

Tommy Morton

Stew Green

There are several hundred that I know but These People Top The List

Recently while trying to trace a friend I came across another friend that I knew on the the Northern this is him You may know him he has the hopes as I do for the good of his pals and friends

JOE MICHINSON

Now a councillor in Gateshead

A good person

Back To Buses

The following photographs are of some of the types of buses and some that I actually drove on service in the thirty one years that I spent in that industry. To get the enlarged photograph click on the picture.

Fleet No 3038 Fleet 2105 Fleet 2099 Fleet 508B

The Northen bought a batch of London Routemasters Because London Transport only operated open rear platform Routemaster vehicles This batch was of front loading vehicles with the doors being operated from the drivers cab thus making them unsuitable for London Transport.

RCN 685 Fleet No 2085

This was the first of the batch of Routemasters bought by the Northern and after a serious accident in Sunderland it was converted to a one person operated vehicle and named the Wearsider.

The Tynesider

Converted from a rear platform Leyland decker in order to utilise the then fleet for

One Man Operation

Fleet No 3401 Fleet No 3491 and Fleet No 3796 Fleet No 3528

Fleet No 3547 Fleet No 3738 and Fleet No 4718

Fleet No 7053

Below are Busways and Stagecoach Vehicles

Restored PTE 341 and 201 also seen in the South Shields livery.

Fleet Nos 340 the newer 341 and 347

Fleet Nos 359 363 and 933

Fleet No 1442 Fleet No 126 and Fleet No 2245

Fleet No 629 Fleet 641 and Fleet 675

Another arm of busways was Blue Bus and Economic

below is a couple of photographs of their fleet

Fleet No 1802 in Economic and Blue Bus livery

The above Photographs are with the kind permission

of Mr. Tim Pickford-Jones and Mr.Brian Cheyney and

Mr P. T. Stokes

Fleet No 2248 Fleet 688 Fleet 422 Fleet 953

I was one of the Killingworth rota drivers which operated the service 60's and so I drove 953 quite a number of times on the service X63

Fleet Nos. 154, 167 and 172

I am not only interested in buses I have quite a few interests, photo manipulation

is another so here is a humorous photo of myself and brother taken back in time to

the Wingrove tram sheds in 1904

that's me as the driver my brother is in the white coat.

The background to this page was created and drawn by me.

The new Livery of Stagecoach on a Alexander 400

Below is a bus to be restored to its former glory

The original Registration No GBB 516k

a former Newcaste P.T.E Atlantean.

The photogragh was taken on the A69

on May 3rd 2003 on its way home to Newcastle upon Tyne where it will be restored

To Follow the story of the restoration click the image

this page is still under construction

and will have photographs of buses belonging to Stagecoach Busways and Go-Ahead Northern on it, most of which will be courtesy of Tim Pickford-Jones and Brian Cheyney and many more people who through an interest in buses contact me and offer photographs which I gladly welcome

If you have a Photograph of the above groups

You can contact the webmaster