The Leyland Titan Fleet

The Leyland Titan was first built in the late 1970's. Initially on Leyland underframe with bodywork by Park Royal. From the early 1980's bodywork was built by Leyland. The main customer for the Titan was London Transport who owned nearly all the Titans built. Other customers were few and included West Midlands Travel, and Reading Buses.

During the mid to late 1990's the Titan began to leave the London bus fleets and join many smaller operators around the country. Nu-Venture was one of these who benefited from their departure from London.

The first Titans (T341/415/59/85) joined the Nu-Venture fleet in January 1997 and were allocated to a new depot in Hoo St. Werburgh in Kent for new school routes between Cliffe and the Hundred of Hoo School. In London they had worked for several London companies but came to Nu-Venture from Metroline where they had seen service on routes 52 and N52.

T459 (IUI 2143) is seen in Chatham Military Road operating on service 191 to Hoo
on 6th June 1997 soon after the route commenced.

Very soon the first batch received dateless registration marks. Soon after two new routes commenced, route 120 to the Isle of Grain and route 191 from Chatham to Hoo. Route 120 was short-lived being withdrawn a couple of months later with another route 192 being registered to operate between Hoo and Chatham via Lodge Hill. By the summer of 1998 the Titans had found themselves back in London on rail replacement work on some weekends.

A year later a fifth Titan joined the fleet from London Central. (T975) joined the fleet in October 1998 where it joined the other four at the Hoo base. Unlike the first four it lacked the red stripe above the lower deck windows. It also unlike the others had the destination equipment fitted to enable both blinds to be changed from the cab. This became defective and standard equipment was fitted.

T975 (A975 SYE) is seen at the Horsted terminus of the June 2002
Dickens Festival Park & Ride service on 9th June 2002.

September 1999 saw the arrival in the fleet of one of the few Leyland Titans that were not new to London Transport. This one was new to West Midlands Travel in January 1979 but since had spent many years on the London bus scene. It arrived on loan to Nu-Venture for a few days complete in Stagecoach East London livery. It was also one of the few built to Single door configuration from new. During its short stay it was used on school contracts in Hoo and Gravesend. Internally it was fitted with high back dual purpose seating.

T1128 (HVX 771T) is seen parked at the Hoo depot of Nu-Venture whilst on loan
on 23rd September 1999. Note the extra half window bay behind the staircase
and not before it, and the wider destination aperture.

Exactly one year later in October 1999 the Titan numbers increased again with the acquisition of (T455) from Stagecoach Fife Scottish, with whom the vehicle had operated with since leaving London. This was to be the first Titan to join the fleet with advert frames still intact and also was fitted with flip board school bus signs front and back. This wasn't to join its colleagues at Hoo but was to remain at Aylesford where it joined a Roe bodied Olympian on route 82 between Park Wood and Maidstone.

After a couple of years service with Nu-Venture the first five Titans all had their seats re-trimmed. T415 was the first to be treated in its own moquette style, whilst the remaining four all received mauve coloured seating as shown in this lower deck picture of T485. The offset rear window is also visible in this view.
	All of Nu-Venture's Titans are/were fitted with Gardner engines a demonstrated by T455.
All the Titans owned by Nu-Venture were new to London as dual door buses.
	The offset rear window, a feature of the Leyland Titan can clearly be seen in this view of gearbox-less T614.

Two years later a further two Leyland Titans joined the fleet. (T614/52) both from Stagecoach East London arrived in April 2002 since then they have seen used on all routes from Hoo and Aylesford depots from time to time. T614 spending most of its time at Aylesford on the 82's and T652 at Hoo on the 191 and 192 until recently when T652 was transferred to Aylesford for route 82. These two Titans replaced a coach seated Alexander bodied Leyland Olympian.

During the summer of 2001 the Titan fleet was fitted with CCTV cameras on both lower and upper decks.

T614 (NUW 614Y) was used on the Chatham Navy Days Park & Ride service on 4th
June 2002. It is seen here taking a break at the Dockyard.

Since its arrival T614 has attended many rallies, including Showbus 2001 and Littlehampton, Cobham and Barking in 2002. For these it regained Leyland badges on the front and wheeltrims.

The Titans are used extensively on Nu-Venture's network of routes in Maidstone and Medway on Mondays to Fridays and occasionally on Saturdays. They have seen use on special Park & Ride services such as the Chatham Navy days and the Rochester Dickens festival.

New ground was broken in September 2002 when Leyland Titan (T415) was used on Transport for London route 185 between Victoria and Lewisham on two Sundays.

T415 (IUI 2140) is pictured at Victoria Station whilst operating on route 185
on 8th September 2002.

During September 2002 T485 regained its original registration mark and in the following month, November 2002 the first of Nu-Venture's Titans was delicenced. T459 became defective and was subsequently delicenced at Hoo. To overcome this T595 was loaned from West Kent Coach Sales for a week during December. However it was only used once in service and spent a day on services 78 and 79 in Maidstone. During its stay it carried "WK Hire" dark red and cream livery. A couple of days later a further Titan T997 arrived on loan. This time from Roundabout buses of Sidcup in Kent. Still in London Central red livery it gained Nu-Venture destination blinds and was still in dual door configuration. It spent a day operating on route 82 between Park Wood and Maidstone, returning to Roundabout on 10th January 2003. This was replaced by a Metrobus the same day.

T997 (A997 SYE) is caught at Nu-Venture's Aylesford depot on 12th December 2002
Its dual door layout being a first for a Titan to operate with Nu-Venture.

On 27th December 2002 Nu-Venture in association with the North Kent Vehicle Preservation Society held a 'Maidstone Jubilee Bus Day'. This involved a display of buses at Maidstone West Station along with a few old and interesting vehicles being operated over some of Nu-Venture's commercial bus routes. A visitor to route 82 (Park Wood to Maidstone Hospital) was Sullivan Buses T747 (OHV 747Y) wearing gold Leyland livery. This was delivered new to London Transport in these colours and numbered T1983. After withdrawal from London buses its original livery was restored by its present owners Sullivan Buses.

Sullivan Buses T747 (OHV 747Y) is seen operating on Nu-Venture route 82 in Maidstone on Maidstone Jubilee Bus Day 27th December 2002. (Photo by Richard Thomas)

During March 2003 a further Titan (T1005) arrived on loan at Aylesford, it was replaced during April 2003 briefly by (T963). By the end of May 2003 a further two (T857 and T1027) had joined the fleet. T1027 also became the first Titan to leave the Nu-Venture fleet, when it joined Southlands in March 2004, and T595 arrived back on loan in April 2004 for a few days followed by T1124 later in the month from the same source.

March 2005 saw another Titan retire from service with T614 being delicenced and stored at Aylesford. Two months and another engine later it returned to service from early May displacing T975 which then became delicenced. April saw a further Titan (T1097) return from repaint into a 'tribute' livery. This time in the former colours of 'Chatham & District Traction Company' and can be found operating in and around the Medway Towns most weekdays. The next Titan to leave the fleet was long term delicenced T485 when it was scrapped in early May 2005.

December 2005 saw a number of Leyland Titans arrive from Stagecoach Merseyside. The Merseyside intake totalled five the largest single intake of Titans into the Nu-Venture fleet at one time. Two entered service in GTL Red livery before the end of the year. The following year in July of 2006 saw another ex Stagecoach Titan arrive in the shape of T592 which replaced T341 sold for preservation after sustaining accident damage.

During 2006 Nu-Venture carried two single door conversions out inhouse to T552 and T984. The first Titan departure for the fleet for 2007 came on the 17 February when T614 was sold to Griffin Management Services of Polhill. A further Titan arrival in 2007 was of T348, from Stagecoach East Kent in September.

March 2008 saw another Titan depart the fleet. Chatham Traction liveried T1097 was towed away for scrap, and Titan T348 was named 'Skipper'. The remains of withdrawn T726 was scrapped at the end of August 2008.

Where are they now?
T341: (07/06) ? For preservation
T459: (11/04) Hardwicks for scrap
T485: (05/05) Ripleys for scrap
T595: (04/05) Farleigh Coaches
T614: (02/07) Griffin Management Services
T726: (08/08) Aylesford Metals for scrap
T1027: (03/04) Southlands Travel, (02/05) Sullivan Buses, Scrapped
T1097: (03/08) T Wigley for scrap

27 August 2008