Olympian operators

[overthewater]

Any Scottish Stagecoach depots still have any in service? And whats left at Northwest and Cumbria?

It would be Bluebird operations mainly, I sure Perthshire have managed to get rid of theres.

Anything that is left tends to be interlinked with School work.

 

[BestWestern]

ECW? Aren't they all Leyland ones?

A number parked up in Stagecoach's Stroud depot - all in reserve?

Apologies, I don't know but you may well be right!
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

It would be Bluebird operations mainly, I sure Perthshire have managed to get rid of theres.

Anything that is left tends to be interlinked with School work.

They did have some ex South S3-- CCD examples; very smart!

 

[Mr Manager]

One of the batch mentioned above is now at Dover depot. saw it this morning but could not get fleet number.

 

[jamieintercity]

It would be Bluebird operations mainly, I sure Perthshire have managed to get rid of theres.

Anything that is left tends to be interlinked with School work.

East Scotland have 13 olympians in service, 8 are allocated to perth for school work (the oldest being 16075), 4 (16771/78/79/80) are allocated to Blairgowrie for school work but can appear sometimes on the 57/59 and the last one 16228 can be usually found in dundee/arbroath but it had been noted the dundee over the past few weeks covering for varies buses.

There is also a Leyland olympian allocated to inverness for the university duplicate, can't remember what the fleet number is?

 

[Strathclyder]

There is also a Leyland olympian allocated to inverness for the university duplicate, can't remember what the fleet number is?

Is it G128 WGX (13636), a tri-axle example?

 

[SCH117X]

Transdev Blazefield as noted earlier in the thread have a number, largely for school use or sightseeing (York). Harrogate has B750GSC, C792 SFS, G281/289UMJ, H546/549/550GKX, J113 KCW and S53/54VNM; Keighley has F96PRE, F263 YTJ, H141-148GGS, S57-59VNM, York has E307/308/313MSG, G336/337CSG,K875 CSF; Burnley has L778SNO, M209VSX, N116UHP, R95LHK and S56/64VNM (as well as N416JBV withdrawn for spares); Blackburn has C173ECK, F262 YTJ, L779SNO, M205VSX, N424/425JBV. Withdrawn and located at Blackburn are B751GSC, B251NVN.

 

[leb37]

Apologies, I don't know but you may well be right!
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Stagecoach West have a number of Olympians in reserve for use during the Cheltenham races. I believe Stroud, Cheltenham and Gloucester depots have the vehicles.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

Apologies, I don't know but you may well be right!
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Stagecoach West have a number of Olympians in reserve for use during the Cheltenham races. I believe Stroud, Cheltenham and Gloucester depots have the vehicles.

Mentioned that earlier in the thread - 5 were parked up in Stroud on Friday. 3 looked frost covered but two looked like they'd moved that morning (though might just have been sun vs. shade etc).

Saw one Stagecoach Midlands Olympian 16174 working this morning near Alcester - Schools service that may be registered

 

[AB93]

Arriva use one or more on the Royal Surrey Hospital park & ride service in Guildford. I think it's a staff-only service, so you probably wouldn't be able to use it yourself. If it's a private contract, they may be able to carry on using them next year (I'm sure somebody here knows the rules better than I do).

The 802 P&R service ended earlier this month, as the hospital has cancelled the contract. So that won't save the Olympian into 2017! (There's only one - it's the last step entrance bus in all of Arriva Southern Counties.)

However, since about October, the regular board it's worked was mostly normal service work - doing the 802 in the morning, then Guildford town 26/27s for a bit, then the 436 Woking - Weybridge in the afternoon to cope with the school loadings. It should still be working this - well, things may have shuffled round since the 802 ended, but it's still needed on the 436.

(And for the record, the 802 P&R was registered as a public service, but charged a hefty £5 single to discourage non-staff use).

 

[HMS Ark Royal]

The 802 P&R service ended earlier this month, as the hospital has cancelled the contract. So that won't save the Olympian into 2017! (There's only one - it's the last step entrance bus in all of Arriva Southern Counties.)

However, since about October, the regular board it's worked was mostly normal service work - doing the 802 in the morning, then Guildford town 26/27s for a bit, then the 436 Woking - Weybridge in the afternoon to cope with the school loadings. It should still be working this - well, things may have shuffled round since the 802 ended, but it's still needed on the 436.

(And for the record, the 802 P&R was registered as a public service, but charged a hefty £5 single to discourage non-staff use).

I'd have reported that to the TC

 

[Busaholic]

[QUOTE

First Eastern Counties are down to just one Olympian, which can only be used on Bernard Matthews contracts as the ticket machine has been removed.[/QUOTE]

Hope it's not a turkey. Bootiful!

 

[AnonymousUser1]

ECW? Aren't they all Leyland ones?

A number parked up in Stagecoach's Stroud depot - all in reserve?

all ECW olypians may well be Leylands but not all Leylands are ECW

 

[ChrisPJ]

Some might disagree with that! Anybody for a Bristol Olympian?

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

all ECW olypians may well be Leylands but not all Leylands are ECW

No, all Leyland Olympians (i.e. Leyland chassis and Leyland bodywork - built by Leyland using jigs etc removed from Lowestoft).

Outwardly looking like ECW but detail differences are apparent. The last ECWs were D reg but can't recall if the first all Leylands were E or F reg

 

[90sWereBetter]

No, all Leyland Olympians (i.e. Leyland chassis and Leyland bodywork - built by Leyland using jigs etc removed from Lowestoft).

Outwardly looking like ECW but detail differences are apparent. The last ECWs were D reg but can't recall if the first all Leylands were E or F reg

I think the first ones were F-reg. There were some D and E reg Olympians bodied by Optare to the same design, so that was probably the stopgap until Leyland had the jigs installed at Workington.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

I think the first ones were F-reg. There were some D and E reg Olympians bodied by Optare to the same design, so that was probably the stopgap until Leyland had the jigs installed at Workington.

The Optare ones were different - they were built using the jigs from CH Roe when it was closed and then bought out to create Optare in 1985/6. A similar design but definitely different to the ECW/all Leyland.

 

[BestWestern]

The Optare ones were different - they were built using the jigs from CH Roe when it was closed and then bought out to create Optare in 1985/6. A similar design but definitely different to the ECW/all Leyland.

The Roe Olympians had the notable difference of a curved top to the windscreens (didn't they do the same with Atlanteans/Fleetlines before that?), as well as whatever other differences might exist. Did Optare not use a different front dash (lights & grille) arrangement? Reading had some didn't they?

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

The Roe Olympians had the notable difference of a curved top to the windscreens (didn't they do the same with Atlanteans/Fleetlines before that?), as well as whatever other differences might exist. Did Optare not use a different front dash (lights & grille) arrangement? Reading had some didn't they?

Here's the standard Optare Olympian

https://www.flickr.com/photos/77751183@N07/17171806880/in/photolist-sapZVS-yhpbrA-xPtSr3-fcP2PU

and the ECW Olympian

https://www.flickr.com/photos/ajax4...SuJ-8rpg6m-pYFsto-nnj5Zp-bvUKMp-saLFZz-pCuMcA

The main difference is the BET windscreen on the ECW rather than the flatter one on the Optare but even little differences like the lack of inlets beneath the drivers window on the ECW and the cooling ducts towards the rear of the vehicle.

The late model Reading ones did have a dash that was different

https://www.flickr.com/photos/51738...Z4z-61ndCY-dRGXHh-eL2xpP-zJPE8c-zJHCq7-peQYnD

However, even some of the late model all-Leyland ones had some variety on that score

https://www.flickr.com/photos/51738...WsE-9LzaYF-gk1UFH-gjX2RR-kKcSA1-kKaEjH-isZ8e6

 

[Andyh82]

The all Leyland Olympians looked so dated, using a body style introduced by ECW at about X or Y reg, but still in use by Leyland as late as J reg.

Other Olympians were mostly bodied by Alexander or Northern Counties at this point, with a much more modern design.

 

[Peter Mugridge]

I don't do buses, but having looked at those pictures I'd say the Olympians look a lot better and more what I would consider modern looking than the newer buses do.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

The all Leyland Olympians looked so dated, using a body style introduced by ECW at about X or Y reg, but still in use by Leyland as late as J reg.

Other Olympians were mostly bodied by Alexander or Northern Counties at this point, with a much more modern design.

The first Olympians were actually older than that - the demonstrators and prototypes were W reg (though the Stevensons prototype may have been older c.1980).

To be fair, vehicle designs tended to have a slightly longer life and they weren't exactly cutting edge. The Northern Counties Palatine 1 body was just an evolution of the design from the early 1970s and was still being fitted to vehicles in 1998 (though the front styling did get an upgrade c.1988).

 

[martinsh]

Select Bus Service vof Penkridge have an Olympian (J722GAP) which sometimes appears on their 877/8 services to Wolverhampton (Saw it yesterday)

 

[ChrisPJ]

To be fair the very last Alex R type Olympians weren't vastly different in overall appearance to the Circa 1980 prototypes. A design that managed close on 2 decades in regular production, ok things like front panels changed but they varied by chassis and operator somewhat anyway

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

To be fair the very last Alex R type Olympians weren't vastly different in overall appearance to the Circa 1980 prototypes. A design that managed close on 2 decades in regular production, ok things like front panels changed but they varied by chassis and operator somewhat anyway

Good observation

https://www.flickr.com/photos/27204...V8b-adXkBh-6QRxey-9PVv45-9R1bAh-9PSC6c-9QXjMB

https://www.flickr.com/photos/dwbph...RUj-6RPsgd-5tFpjZ-6QRxey-d1uxJY-oP5Li6-8tpbLA

 

[JonathanH]

The dash used on the Reading and Badgerline Olympians was that from the coach version of the bodywork dating back to the mid-1980s (although not the prototype)

The prototype had something different
https://www.flickr.com/photos/8050359@N07/4463052600

This Y-reg example had it
https://www.flickr.com/photos/16819691@N08/8093938666

However, the dash was discontinued on the second phase Olympian coach model (before the Reading and Badgerline Olympians were built)
http://www.pbase.com/nikpiks/image/141873348

 

[Alistair G.]

A local from in Leicester named "confidence" has quite a few Leyland Olympians. Sadly it seems it is all school work / private hire contracts they do, however I contacted the company last year and they are more than happy for anyone wanting photos to go down the depot and take a look. None of this "H&S prohibits us....". Blah blah blah

Managed to snap a picture of one of their fleet in my home town Lutterworth (normally quite out of their usual operating area) which can been seen here

https://m.flickr.com/#/photos/113583519@N03/22678487869/

Haven't put all the depot photos up I'm afraid.

 

[BestWestern]

To be fair the very last Alex R type Olympians weren't vastly different in overall appearance to the Circa 1980 prototypes. A design that managed close on 2 decades in regular production, ok things like front panels changed but they varied by chassis and operator somewhat anyway

Worth pointing out that the M reg Lothian example there looks somewhat more dated than it is, owing to it being an RH highbridge example (big windows), with tall flat windscreen and top-mounted wipers. Most Alexander examples went to Stagecoach, and these were lower RL variants, which although very similar actually looked consderably more modern.

 

[Mikey C]

The all Leyland Olympians looked so dated, using a body style introduced by ECW at about X or Y reg, but still in use by Leyland as late as J reg.

Other Olympians were mostly bodied by Alexander or Northern Counties at this point, with a much more modern design.

I always thought they looked nicer, especially the London Ls, which to me looked far more stylish and modern than the boxy Alexander and NC ones, especially the latter!
Indeed the next generation of double deckers tried to get away from this box on wheels look.