Old trucks

171020F-Melbourne'HeraldSun'-161yearsHolden.

Two Melbourne and Metropolitan Tramways Board AEC Regal Mk III buses at a Fisherman's Bend terminus, outside GMH.

Roderick

One time in the 70s ,i went to look at a army dukw at Molendinar,on the Gold Coast...The guy had a very nice half fronted Daimler bus with a 5 LW Gardner in it .Dunno what he was doing with it,but he seemed to pretty rich ,as he had a big industrial shed with nothing else in it........Incidentally ,I dont think Brisbane ever had half fronted busses,because the needed a conductor to collect fares......Most of the double deckers were half front .

Couple of half fronts in Sydney AEC and Dennis

What was the reason for the half cab?

So you could get to the engine easily. Buses started out as full bonnet, then to get more seats the driver was moved forward. Leyland being one of the first bus manufacturers called that arrangement a side type ie driver beside engine.

Thanks, makes sense, when it’s pointed out.

The pommy bus motors had all the accessories on the left side so as to be easily serviced in a half front.....but a half front bus needs a fare collector/conductor,and there never were any in Brisbane .....I think it was a union thing in the changeover from trams ,same as the railways still need a fireman.

Most UK half-cab buses were double deck, and needed a conductor regardless.
The single deck ones were on rural routes, not in big cities.
M&MTB did run them with just a driver. That was the subject of a longer and bitter dispute, and the commission ruled that such buses had to have a maximum of 31 seats. Several longer AEC buses were cut down, and were nicknamed 'bobtails'. All of the Mk IV versions were similarly short, also the Mk VI.
Passengers boarded through a front door, and paid the driver through a hatch/window into the cab.

780410-14or17-20-02-BoxHill-MkVI.723-MkIII.419-RSmith

Roderick

I reckon they will go back to drivers locked in a little cab soon, with all the assualts and uncontrolled hooliganism.

We also had Daimler half front busses in Sydney.

I think my pushbike was faster up hills than those busses.

Going up either side of the Spit Bridge was back to first and crawl up the hill.