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Birmingham buses

Simms Motor Units Limited | Science Museum Group Collection

Rare photo of Simms’s Motor Scout, June 1899. Source

A one and a half horsepower Simms’ Patent Automatic Petrol Motor with Simms magneto-electric ignition was fitted and the standard tank carried enough fuel for 120 miles. The Motor Scout was convertible to a two-seated quadricycle. The quadricycle was also available without the gun for non-military purposes as a two-seated vehicle for £120. Simms acquired some of the foreign patent rights to the petrol engine.
I remember the Minimec injection pumps fitted on all our coaches. One day when out on test the rack broke at the end so putting the engine in to max revs and unable to stop. Luckily I was passenger at the time so managed to loosen one of the fuel lines and stop the engine. We made our way back to the garage with me controlling the rack after taking the cover off the side of the pump, exciting times.
 
I remember the Minimec injection pumps fitted on all our coaches. One day when out on test the rack broke at the end so putting the engine in to max revs and unable to stop. Luckily I was passenger at the time so managed to loosen one of the fuel lines and stop the engine. We made our way back to the garage with me controlling the rack after taking the cover off the side of the pump, exciting times.
safer than the ventury control pumps i saw a engine max rev no stopping it, till it blew apart when a ventury pipe rusted through, it ran on engine oil from the sump after the fuel line was cut.
iu
 
Just for a laugh. About 30 years ago I was working at a company when one of the young women in my department came back into the office having been on an errand through the factory and told us that a muscular young man had spoken to her saying "I hear your boyfriend is a bodybuilder", to which she replied "Yes he builds mini bus bodies at Carlyle Works".
 

Simms Motor Units Limited | Science Museum Group Collection

Rare photo of Simms’s Motor Scout, June 1899. Source

A one and a half horsepower Simms’ Patent Automatic Petrol Motor with Simms magneto-electric ignition was fitted and the standard tank carried enough fuel for 120 miles. The Motor Scout was convertible to a two-seated quadricycle. The quadricycle was also available without the gun for non-military purposes as a two-seated vehicle for £120. Simms acquired some of the foreign patent rights to the petrol engine.
Pete, thank you for that!
I did look them up and saw a tie to CAV. Based upon the attached are article and what I found mostly in the US (where I looked) that the Simms name and brand are alive and well in the reman market. I was surprised that there are two or three companies that remanufacture the Simms products for current sale.
The reman market is a very large market for heavy vehicle and diesel applications. Most manufacturers of diesel engines have an entire business dedicated to reman.
 
safer than the ventury control pumps i saw a engine max rev no stopping it, till it blew apart when a ventury pipe rusted through, it ran on engine oil from the sump after the fuel line was cut.
iu
Mechanical govenors saved our later Ford engined coaches from engine siezures as our Drivers had worked out that removing the air cleaner hose off the venturi increased the engine revs way above the governed speed. Only seen one engine runaway and that was in a workshop when a mechanic had somehow crossed the venturi pipes over, foreman came over and stuffed a lump of rag in the intake.
 
Busses

I Used To Go To Icknield Stret Hockley Brook On The Bus,s
Around On The No,8 From Aston Cross In Rocky Lane
We Was So Poor Mom Got A Load Of Plastic Tokens From The Education Dept , Some Was Grren And Some Was Red Ones
And They Was Thevalue Of 1 Penny Other Wise We Couldnt Get To School And Also Old Man Kitchener Wouldappearat The Front Door
Asking Why Ain,t We Are In School
Blimy They Was The Days
Diid Any Body Else Get These Tokens ,? .
Best Wishes Astonian ,;;
 
Mechanical govenors saved our later Ford engined coaches from engine siezures as our Drivers had worked out that removing the air cleaner hose off the venturi increased the engine revs way above the governed speed. Only seen one engine runaway and that was in a workshop when a mechanic had somehow crossed the venturi pipes over, foreman came over and stuffed a lump of rag in the intake.
Smart foreman!
 
I to miss Alan a lot Carolina, always so interesting, and his old knowledge of Brum from so many area's, he would always answer your questions to, he sent me an email not long before he passed, telling me he was ill, yes greatly missed by me at least, but I suspect quite a few others to.
 
It looks like it was after March 1969 when Renee Short, MP for Wolverhampton NE, had her request rejected by the Minister of Transport for legislation to be introduced that would allow Sikhs to wear blue turbans with a badge instead of the traditional peaked cap.
Here is the story of the man who changed the rules about turbans on Wolverhampton's buses - uniform colour turban cloth is now given in place of a cap to those whose religion requires it.
 
I have just acqùired thè late David Harvey's last booķ?,Birmingham s Crossley Buses, although a lot of the photos are dark,a lot are of interest, because of the background behind the buses, of Birmingham in the fifties and sixties. I questioned whether it is his last book, because in mid 2021, Amazon were advertising this for March and a similar title for Daimler for April. If you liked the Crossley, we'll worth looking at.
Bob
 
According to the latest article from the Birmingham Libraries Iron Room, Employment and Dyche the colour bar wasn’t lifted on bus drivers in Birmingham until 1954.
Mirroring the situation in other British cities, in post-war Birmingham black people were barred from employment as conductors or drivers on buses. Although they were employed in local authority garages and repair works as mechanics, they were excluded from roles which involved contact with passengers. Minutes of the Birmingham Transport Committee concerning the issue of 'coloured labour' provide an insight into the shifting attitude towards the employment of black people by the Birmingham Corporation until the matter was finally resolved in 1954.

Strong opposition by the Committee against the introduction of 'Polish, foreign and coloured personnel' as platform staff in 1949 (BCC/1/BE/24: minute 3564) gave way to a more positive attitude in 1951 which was thwarted by the trade unions and its members. Objections raised by the unions included members' fear of a reduction in their earning capacity and the loss of large numbers of existing staff if black people were employed, as well as the belief that women preferred not to work with 'coloured men' BCC/1/BE/26: minute 4960; BCC/1/BE/28: minute 6132.) Despite 860 vacancies for conductors, applications by black men and women were rejected (The Times 9/2/1954) and the organisation sought workers from Belgium and Malta for vacancies that could have been filled by black workers already in Britain (BCC/1/BE/26: minute 4880.)

By 1954 the Transport Committee was growing impatient at the lack of progress made on the issue. The Committee was facing mounting pressure as a result of not only the acuteness of the continuing labour crisis but also increasing public attention and negative publicity in the press. As a result of this it finally resolved that the General Manager "be authorised to engage any suitable personnel for service in the Department" (BCC/1/BE/28: minute 6283.)

In March 1954 Raja Mohammed Shafi became Birmingham City Transport's first black conductor (Birmingham Gazette 24/3/1954.)
 
Mirroring the situation in other British cities, in post-war Birmingham black people were barred from employment as conductors or drivers on buses. Although they were employed in local authority garages and repair works as mechanics, they were excluded from roles which involved contact with passengers. Minutes of the Birmingham Transport Committee concerning the issue of 'coloured labour' provide an insight into the shifting attitude towards the employment of black people by the Birmingham Corporation until the matter was finally resolved in 1954.

Strong opposition by the Committee against the introduction of 'Polish, foreign and coloured personnel' as platform staff in 1949 (BCC/1/BE/24: minute 3564) gave way to a more positive attitude in 1951 which was thwarted by the trade unions and its members. Objections raised by the unions included members' fear of a reduction in their earning capacity and the loss of large numbers of existing staff if black people were employed, as well as the belief that women preferred not to work with 'coloured men' BCC/1/BE/26: minute 4960; BCC/1/BE/28: minute 6132.) Despite 860 vacancies for conductors, applications by black men and women were rejected (The Times 9/2/1954) and the organisation sought workers from Belgium and Malta for vacancies that could have been filled by black workers already in Britain (BCC/1/BE/26: minute 4880.)

By 1954 the Transport Committee was growing impatient at the lack of progress made on the issue. The Committee was facing mounting pressure as a result of not only the acuteness of the continuing labour crisis but also increasing public attention and negative publicity in the press. As a result of this it finally resolved that the General Manager "be authorised to engage any suitable personnel for service in the Department" (BCC/1/BE/28: minute 6283.)

In March 1954 Raja Mohammed Shafi became Birmingham City Transport's first black conductor (Birmingham Gazette 24/3/1954.)
Who sat on the Birmingham Transport Committee?
 
I was just looking to see if there was a similar situation on London Transport (coincidentally there is currently an exhibition on workers from the Caribbean at the Transport Museum) but I can't see there were any problems with the Unions.

The first black bus driver in London was in 1910 and presumably some of the men who came over on the Windrush in 1948 were employed?
In 1956 London Transport were operating a scheme to recruit staff directly from the Caribbean, Barbados in particular.
 
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