What were the first buses known as and who operated the first public transport buses?
The first BUSES were eight-seater vehicles known as carrosses cinq soli. They were introduced in Paris by a company formed under Royal Patent in January 1662 by the French philosopher and scientist Blaise Pascal and his friend and chief financial backer, the Duc de Roannez. A scheduled service began between the Porte de Saint-Antoine and the Porte du Luxembourg on 18 March 1662, four vehicles running in one direction and three in the other at 7-8 min intervals. It was stressed by the Commissaries that the carrosses would leave punctually whether full or empty, an innovation in itself. The fare was a flat-rate 5 sous for the whole or any part of journey.
At first the idea of an urban system of public transport was greeted with great enthusiasm, except by the soldiers and peasant classes who were excluded from using the service under the terms of the Patent.
The word ‘omnibus’ was coined by Stanislas Baudry, the proprietor of hot-water baths in a suburb of Nantes, who began running a special service for his patrons from la place du Commerce in the center of the city in 1823. Finding that his vehicles were being used by people living in the suburb as well as bathers, he decided to extend his operations and Cast about for a word that would suitably express the public nature of his service. The terminus in la place du Commerce was outside a shop kept by a M. Omnes, whose sign bore the slogan `Omnes Omnibus’, and Baudry, appreciating that ‘omnibus’ could equally well be translated as ‘for everybody’ as ‘for everything’, borrowed the word for his own purpose
The first regular scheduled bus service was introduced on 4 July 1829 by Lafitte in Paris. Shillibeer operated two 22—seat rear-entrance buses drawn by three horses abreast ‘after the French fashion’ on the route from the ‘Yorkshire Stingo’ in Marylebone Road, London, to the Bank via New Road (now Euston Road and City Road). The original conductors, both sons of naval officers, were dressed in midshipmen uniforms, and further tone was given to the undertaking by the provision of newspapers and magazines for the amusement and edification of passengers. The fare was being for the full distance, or 6d for any intermediate stage.
The first SELF-PROPELLED OMNIBUS was the 10 seat steam-driven Infant, built by Walter Hancock and put into service experimentally ‘as a means of dissipating … prejudices’ (it was not licenced to carry paying passengers) between Stratford and the City in 1831. The first scheduled service for paying passengers was inaugurated by the London & Paddington Steam Carriage Co. on 22 April 1833, when Hancock’s 14—seat Enterprise began plying between Paddington and the City. During the next three and a half years the Company’s steam-buses carried 12.761 passengers without mishap and travelled 4,200 route miles, but were finally driven off the road by unnecessarily harsh restrictions on their use.
The first DOUBLE-DECKER Bus was built by Adams and Co. of Bow, accommodation for 14 upper-deck passengers sitting back-to-back on the roof. Those riding on top were charged half-fare. The year 1851 saw the general introduction of double-decker buses as proprietors hastened to add the `knifeboard’ (so named after the piece of wood wrapped in emery-paper used for cleaning knives) to accommodate the vast increases of passengers caused by the Great Exhibition.
The first BUSES WITH AN ENCLOSED UPPER DECK were four Commer vehicles introduced by Widnes Corporation on 9 April 1909. In London there were police restrictions against roofed-in upper decks, and it was not until 2 October 1925 that the enclosed NS type went into service.
The first totally enclosed Double Decker—top deck, staircase and driver’s cab—was ST1, introduced by the London General Omnibus Co (LGOC) on their 11A route in 1930.
The first PETROL-DRIVEN MOTOR Bus was a 5 hp Benz single-deck enclosed landau, which began running on a 15 km routeSiegen—Netphen—Deutz—in the North Rhineland on 18 March 1895. Operated by a local co-operative, the Netphener Omnibus Co., the bus could seat six to eight passengers inside and another two outside on the driver’s box. The driver was Hermann Golze from Netphen. A second, exactly similar bus came into service on 1 July 1895. They maintained an average speed (without stops) of 14 kph and took 1 hr 20 min for the complete journey.
In Britain the first motor-bus service was advertised in the Bradford Observer for 25 September 1897: ‘The Yorkshire Motor Car Co. Ltd., Albert Buildings, Bradford. Motor omnibuses daily from Town Hall to Four Lane Ends’.
The service was run by J.E. Tuke (see also Motor-Car Hire Service), using a covered Daimler wagonette. The fare for the 2-mile distance was 6 d. It is not known how long the service was maintained and, apart from the paid advertisement quoted above, this epoch-making event in the annals of British transport passed completely unnoticed by Bradford’s three newspapers.
The first FULL-SIZE PETROL OMNIBUS WITH CONVENTIONAL Bus BODY known in regular service was a 16 hp 6-ton single-deck Tenting Omnibus seating 18 passengers, which was running between Nantes and Velheuil, France by March 1898.
In Britain the first full-size petrol buses, also the first London motor buses in scheduled service, were two steel-tyred 12hp German Daimlers with 26-seat Bayley double-decker bodies, introduced by the Motor Traction Co. on a route from Kennington to Victoria Station via Westminster Bridge on 9 October 1899.
