Leyland Tiger single-decker
After the war, the single-deck fleet was in poor shape, with
many early buses overdue for replacement. However, with
attention understandably focussed on the need for new
double-deckers, the stop-gap decision was made to purchase for the
Central Area a number of AEC Regal IIIs (50 buses classified
14T12) and Leyland Tigers (131 in total, classified
TD).
These buses were standard products and did not reflect the
advances made by London Transport before the war. The
Regals were delivered in 1946, followed by the first 31 Leylands,
all with bodies by Weymann. The second batch of 100 TDs
followed in 1948 with bodies by Mann Egerton, to a design
very similar to those provided by the same company for the Country
Area AEC 15T13s. Unlike these last of the T class which had
RT-type engines and transmission, however, the later TDs still had
crash gearboxes.
The TDs were used on a number of routes around London,
including the
236 and 210, but with the
reduction in bus traffic, they became surplus to requirements and
last ran in service in 1962 at Kingston and (last of all)
Edgware.
