Northern Counties Motor and Engineering Company was a manufacturer of bus bodywork located in Wigan Lane, Wigan, in North West England. Wigan is a large town in Greater Manchester, England. It stands on the River Douglas, south of Preston, west-northwest of Manchester North West England is one of the nine official Regions of England.
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Overview
Traditionally buses in Britain have consisted of a chassis upon which a separate body was constructed, typically by a different manufacturer. This allowed operators to specify a vehicle that suited their particular requirements. Chassis manufacturers in Britain included Leyland, Daimler, AEC, and Guy (all now defunct). A chassis (plural "chassis" (ˈʃæːsiː ˈtʃæːsiː consists of a framework that supports an inanimate object analogous to an Animal 's This article is about the British automobile manufacturer See Daimler for other uses derived from the German engineer and inventor Gottlieb Daimler. AEC was a United Kingdom based vehicle manufacturer which built Buses and Trucks from 1912 until 1979 Guy Motors was a British company based in Fallings Park, Wolverhampton that made cars lorries and buses Having selected a chassis, an operator would also specify a particular engine and this assemblage would be transported to a bodybuilder to manufacture the bodywork. An engine is a mechanical device that produces some form of output from a given input Northern Counties was a mid-size bodybuilder with a strong reputation and loyal client base. It was bought out and subsequently closed in 2005 by Alexander Dennis. Alexander Dennis Limited (formerly known as TransBus International) is the largest bus builder in the United Kingdom and one of the largest in the world
History
Northern Counties Motor and Engineering Company Limited was founded in Wigan in 1919 by Henry Lewis. The Volvo Ailsa B55 was a front-engined Double-decker bus chassis built in Scotland by Ailsa, Volvo's British commercial vehicle agency Cardiff Bus (Bws Caerdydd is the dominant bus operator in Cardiff, Wales and the surrounding area including Barry and Penarth. The Lewis family remained owners of the company until it was bought out over seventy years later. As was common at the time, early products were bodywork for private automobiles. By the early 1920s the private automobile work had ceased and the manufacture of bodywork for service buses commenced. Bodywork was for both single-deck and double-deck vehicles. Very few coaches were produced. In British English and Australian English, the term coach is used to refer to a large motor vehicle for conveying passengers
During the Second World War, Northern Counties was authorized by the government to produce bus bodies to a utility specification, mainly using steel-framed construction. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including
Northern Counties established a loyal client base and reputation for quality construction in the post-war years. Notable clients included local operators SHMD Board, Manchester Corporation, and Lancashire United. Further afield, Barton Transport and Southdown Motor Services were among a number of regular customers.
In 1967 another bus body builder, Massey Brothers Ltd, located in nearby Pemberton, was acquired and became a part of the Northern Counties operations. The Massey factory was retained and used as a paint-shop and for final completion of bodywork assembled at Wigan Lane.
The Transport Act of 1968 merged the municipal corporations of Manchester, Salford, Bolton, Oldham, Stockport, Rochdale, Bury and Stalybridge, Hyde, Mossley and Dukinfield Joint Board (SHMD Board). Salford lies at the heart of the City of Salford, a Metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, in North West England. Bolton ( is a large town in Greater Manchester, in the North West region of England. Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England It lies amongst the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers Irk and Medlock Stockport ( is a large town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on elevated ground on the River Mersey at the influx of the rivers Goyt Rochdale is a large Market town in Greater Manchester, England Bury is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the River Irwell, north-northwest of the city of Manchester, west-southwest of The resulting conglomerate was known as the Southeast Lancashire Northeast Cheshire Passenger Transport Authority, commonly known as SELNEC. SELNEC was faced with a fleet of 2500 vehicles consisting of a wide variety of types and manufacturers, reflecting the preferences of their former municipal owners. Northern Counties worked closely with SELNEC to develop a standard bus for fleet replacement.
The Local Government Act 1972 came into effect on 1 April 1974. The Local Government Act 1972 (1972 c 70 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom, that reformed local government in England and Wales Events 527 - Byzantine Emperor Justin I names his nephew Justinian I as co-ruler and successor to the throne Year 1974 ( MCMLXXIV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the 1974 Gregorian calendar. This reorganization added Wigan Corporation Transport to SELNEC to create the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive. Wigan is a large town in Greater Manchester, England. It stands on the River Douglas, south of Preston, west-northwest of Manchester Greater Manchester PTE was the largest bus operator outside of London until privatization in the late 1980s. The Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive ( GMPTE) is the public body ( Passenger Transport Executive) responsible for co-ordinating Public transport London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. A large proportion of Northern Counties production after this time was for the Greater Manchester fleet. Greater Manchester is a Metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2
In 1975 the company collaborated with Foden Ltd, a well-known manufacturer of commercial vehicles, to produce a semi-integral double-deck vehicle intended to compete with chassis manufacturer Leyland. Leyland had merged with traditional rival Daimler and was experiencing production and quality problems. In the event, only seven Foden-NC's were produced, going to Greater Manchester PTE, West Midlands PTE, West Yorkshire PTE, Derby Corporation Transport and Potteries Motor Traction. The Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive ( GMPTE) is the public body ( Passenger Transport Executive) responsible for co-ordinating Public transport The West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive (WMPTE sometimes known as Centro, is a local government organisation ( Passenger Transport Executive) responsible The West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (WYPTE is the Passenger Transport Executive for the county of West Yorkshire, England. Derby (pronounced "dar-bee" /dˈɑːbɪ/ is a city in the East Midlands of England.
The 1980s and 1990s were challenging years for the British bus industry, with the privatization of publicly owned operators, deregulation of routes and the reduction and subsequent elimination of the Bus Grant, a Government grant that paid for a large proportion of the cost of new vehicles. As a result, the purchase of new bus vehicles fell sharply as operators contended with the brave new world of competition, and mini-buses became the vogue. This fall in orders was combined with increased competition from overseas manufacturers.
Northern Counties reputation and engineering skills saw it survive these difficult times and become a major supplier once again as demand picked up in the mid-1990s. For Volvo's low floor double-decker also known as Volvo Olympian see Volvo B9TL. Go North East was originally the founding company of the Go-Ahead Group. In May 1995, it was purchased for £10 million by the Henlys group, owner of Plaxton. Henlys Group PLC was a car dealer that became a major player in the Bus and coach business in both North America and England. Plaxton is a builder of Bus and coach vehicle bodies based in Scarborough, England. The Northern Counties name was dropped in 1999 and vehicles were badged as Plaxton.
In 2001 Henlys became part of a joint venture with the Mayflower group, owner of body-builder Alexander and chassis manufacturer Dennis. Walter Alexander is also the name of participant in the OJ Simpson Robbery Case Walter Alexander Coachbuilders was a Scottish Dennis Specialist Vehicles is a major British coachbuilder and manufacturer of specialised commercial vehicles based in Guildford, England. The joint venture was known as TransBus, and vehicles were badged using the TransBus name. Alexander Dennis Limited (formerly known as TransBus International) is the largest bus builder in the United Kingdom and one of the largest in the world
After the failure of the Mayflower Group in 2004, TransBus was sold to a private group of investors and became Alexander Dennis. Alexander Dennis Limited (formerly known as TransBus International) is the largest bus builder in the United Kingdom and one of the largest in the world The former Northern Counties facility was closed by Alexander Dennis in January 2005. Alexander Dennis Limited (formerly known as TransBus International) is the largest bus builder in the United Kingdom and one of the largest in the world
Products
- Palatine (double-deck)
- Paladin (single-deck)
- Prestige (low-floor single-deck)
- President (low-floor double-deck)
Competitors
References
- Ogden, Eric; (1976). The Northern Counties Palatine is a Step-entrance Double-decker bus body built by Northern Counties of Wigan UK The Northern Counties Paladin, also badged as the Plaxton Paladin towards the end of production is a step-entrance single-deck bus body built by Northern Counties The Plaxton Prestige is a low-floor single-deck bus body built by Plaxton at the Wigan factory of its Northern Counties subsidiary and at its main Scarborough factory The Plaxton President is a Double-decker bus body originally built by Plaxton of the United Kingdom, it was unveiled in 1997 and built Dating its origins back to 1889 Park Royal Vehicles along with its Leeds -based subsidiary Charles H East Lancashire Coachbuilders Limited was a manufacturer of Bus bodies and Carriages founded in Blackburn in 1934 Charles H Roe Ltd was a Yorkshire coachbuilding company It was reformed in 1923 (after the 1921 company failed based at Crossgates Carriage Works, in Northern Counties of Wigan. The Transport Publishing Company. ISBN 0-903839-10-5.
- Booth, Gavin (1983). The British Bus Today and Tomorrow. Ian Allan Ltd. ISBN 0-7110-1296-2
- Townsin, Alan (1985). The British Bus Story - The 'Sixties - Turbulent Times. The Transport Publishing Company. ISBN 0863171184
Further reading
- Rowe, Bob (2006). Northern Counties of Wigan. Venture Publications Ltd. ISBN 1-905304-02-1
External links
- A very useful listing of all bodies built from 1956 to 2005
- Detailed history of the development of the SELNEC standard
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