Although records show mail coaches were running on
regular services through Accrington by at least 1824, when 'The Traveller' ran
from Manchester to Clitheroe, via Bury, Haslingden, Accrington and Whalley,
every Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday, making the
return journey the same evening, it was not until 1882 that Accrington
Corporation’s thoughts turned to providing local public transport for its
citizens.
Work commenced in 1884 under the authority granted by
the Accrington Corporation Tramways Act of 1882 and was constructed by the
Corporation themselves and leased to a private company – the Accrington
Corporation Steam Tramways Company Ltd., for a period of 21 years. The system,
consisting of three routes all radiating from a terminus in Market Place; to the
Commercial Hotel, Church; to the Load of Mischief in Clayton-le-Moors, and to
Baxenden Railway Station, opened on the 5th April 1886.
In 1905, Accrington Corporation obtained authority to
purchase the Company, which it subsequently did on the 20th September
1907 for the sum of £2,227, but even before this the Corporation had made a
start on electrifying and reconstructing the tramway. On the 2nd
August 1907 the first electrified route, a double track line following the route
of the former steam tram to Church and then continuing as a single track for a
further 1¼ miles to Oswaldtwistle, was opened. The reconstructed single-track
line to Clayton-le-Moors opened on the 20th September, extended a
further few hundred yards to the canal bridge, and on the 26th
October a single track line to the Cemetery at Huncoat was opened. The line to
Baxenden Station (a combination of double- and single-line track) opened on the
1st January 1908.
The initial rolling stock consisted of 4 (Nos. 1-4),
Brush 32-seat single-deckers and 14 (Nos. 5-18) Brush 50-seat double-deckers,
resplendent in a bright red and cream livery. The following year two more
single-deckers arrived (Nos. 5-6, the double-deckers previously numbered 5-6
being re-numbered 19-20 to make way), again from Brush of Loughborough, who were
to supply all of the Corporations’ tramcars. The former steam tram depot on
Ellison Street was rebuilt to accommodate the new electric cars.
An extension of the Baxenden line to the Commercial
Hotel in the centre of Haslingden was completed on 28th September
1908 and further extended to Lockgate (on the Haslingden/Rawtenstall boundary)
on the 20th October 1908, where it met with the tracks of Rawtenstall
Corporation. Due to disagreements between the two councils, through running did
not commence until 1st April 1910.
Further single- and double-deck cars were added to the
Accrington Corporation fleet over the next few years until 1926, when the final
two cars (Nos. 42-43) were delivered. Being of the ‘low-floor’ double-deck
type, they were able to squeeze (by just 3 inches!) under a low railway bridge
at Church and spent most of their lives working the Oswaldtwistle section,
formerly the preserve of the single-deck cars.
By this time, however, several independent operators had
begun to acquire licences for motorbus operation in and around Accrington, as
well as BAT-owned Ribble Motor Services. (William Lobers had begun operating a motorbus
service between Great Harwood, Rishton and Clayton-le-Moors, using a charabanc
as early as 1912.
Three more double-deck buses were purchased and a route connecting Accrington to
Waddington, via Whalley and Clitheroe was subsequently commenced, but the advent
of World War I in 1914 brought the enterprise to a premature end). The major independent operator was the Rishton & Antley Motor Company (formed in 1919), who operated several local
and limited stop services in the area. Other operators were; W. A. Moore &
Company of Great Harwood (t/a the Calder Bus Service), Lakeland & Pickup
(t/a the Hodder Bus Service) of Whalley, Lancashire Industrial Motors of
Blackburn (t/a Pendle Motor Services) and Kenyon, Coleman & Robinson of
Blackburn. As a result, the Corporation duly applied for powers to run their own
omnibuses, which were granted in the Accrington Corporation Act of 1928 (which
also included provision for the operation of trolleybuses, although these powers
were never used).
The inaugural bus service commenced on the 12th
November 1928 between Huncoat and Higher Antley, via the town centre, operated
by two Dennis G-type (Nos. 44-45) and four Dennis E-type (Nos. 50-53)
single-deckers, wearing an unusual dark blue and red livery. Much speculation
has surrounded the choice of this colour scheme, although the general consensus
is that it was modelled on the uniform of the East Lancashire Regiment (which
was predominantly dark blue and maroon), possibly in commemoration of the ‘Accrington
Pals’, who suffered terrible losses at the Battle of the Somme in 1916. On the
3rd December 1928, a limited stop service between Accrington and
Rawtenstall, jointly with Haslingden and Rawtenstall Corporations commenced; it
was extended to serve Bacup the following year. A similar service between
Accrington and Blackburn commenced in 1929.
Fourteen new buses were delivered in 1930 in
anticipation of the abandonment of the tramways - six Leyland Lion LT1’s with
Brush 32-seat bodywork (Nos. 60-65), and eight Leyland Titan TD1’s with
Leyland 48-seat bodywork (Nos. 66-73). On the 30th April 1930, the
tram route to Rawtenstall was closed, followed on the 26th August
1931 by the routes to Clayton-le-Moors and Oswaldtwistle, the new buses taking
over the following day.
In September 1930, Accrington Corporation contributed
£2250 towards the purchase by Ribble Motor Services of the Rishton & Antley
Motor Company Ltd., becoming joint operators on routes from Accrington to
Clitheroe, and Oswaldtwistle to Clitheroe (both via Great Harwood), Accrington
to Burnley and Accrington to Oswaldtwistle, although no vehicles were involved.
On the 6th January 1932 the final tram ran to
the Cemetery at Huncoat and the following day the motorbus took over. Another 20
new buses had been delivered in 1931 and they were immediately put to work. The
opportunity was also taken to introduce new services to Laneside, Fern Gore,
Spring Hill, Woodnook and Within Grove, to Moscow Mill via Charter Street and to
Church Kirk via Countess Street.
By the time of the Second World War in 1939, much of the
local transport network was in place, although due to the hostilities many
services had to be reduced in order to save fuel. Whilst the war effort was in
full swing, extra services had to be operated to the Royal Ordnance factory at
Lower Darwen and late evening services were dropped. It was not until some
months after the War had ended, in October 1945, that services returned to
normal.
One consequence of the War was that Accrington was
forced to add the Guy Arab chassis to its fleet for the first time. Nine
examples of this marque were delivered during 1943-1945 and must have
sufficiently impressed the Corporation, for regular orders were subsequently
placed for this chassis (along with Leyland) until it was no longer available.
1948 deliveries included four Leyland Tiger PS1’s with
Burlingham B35F bodywork, delivered in an experimental livery of green and
cream. Although they ran like this for around four years they were eventually
repainted in the conventional dark blue and red livery and the experiment was
not repeated.
Advertisements had not appeared on Accrington’s trams
or buses since 1919, when the transport manager had banned them, but in
September 1949 the Transport Committee agreed that, once again, Corporation
buses would be allowed to carry advertisements.
Throughout the 1950’s and 60’s there was little
change in the route network, apart from minor route changes and modifications to
frequency. In 1961 two interesting vehicles were added to the fleet in the shape
of the Guy Wulfrunian. It was an attempt by Guy Motors to produce a front
entrance vehicle on a conventional front-engined chassis, but strangely
Accrington’s Wulfrunians were built with rear entrances. In the event they
proved unpopular with passengers and drivers alike and spent just 7 years in the
fleet. By 1964, when the Corporation placed an order for three more Guy chassis,
production of the Wulfrunian had ceased and the more reliable Guy Arab chassis
was purchased instead. This turned out to be the last Guy order for the
Corporation and five years later Guy Motors themselves disappeared from the
scene.
In 1968 Accrington purchased three examples of the
Bristol RESL chassis with East Lancs B47F bodywork and more followed over the
next few years, although the Corporation still continued to be loyal to Leyland.
Following local government re-organisation in 1974,
Accrington became part of the new borough of Hyndburn, along with Church,
Oswaldtwistle, Clayton, Great Harwood, Rishton and Altham, and on the 1st
April 1974 the municipal fleet and services were transferred to the new
authority and Accrington Corporation Transport passed into transport history.
In producing this history
reference has been made to the following sources;
The Directory of British Tramways (Keith Turner, PSL 1996); Trams in the North
West (Peter Hesketh, Ian Allan 1995); PSV Circle Fleet History PC4/PC4A (1987);
Hyndburn & Rossendale 75 Years of Municipal Operation (Peter Deegan, Omnibus
Society 1982), Accrington's Public Transport 1886-1986 (Robert Rush, Landy 2000).