Created 8-Jan-22
Modified 8-Mar-24
In September 1952 Bradford agreed to buy the entire Notts & Derby trolleybus fleet of thirty-two vehicles. The prize amongst this fleet was a batch of fifteen BUT 9611Ts with Weymann H30/26R bodies which were only about four years old when they arrived in Bradford but, apart from being 7'-6" wide, were very similar to Bradford's most recent new purchases.
The Notts & Derby trolleybus system was abandoned on 25th April 1953. 774 entered service in Bradford three days before that but the rest of the batch entered service in June or July of that year. Bradford's 760-774 (NNU 224-238) had been 343-357 in the Notts & Derby fleet. They were able to enter service quickly as the similarity of the two operators' liveries meant that they fitted in reasonably well, although the blue was darker - of course their youth also meant that little remedial work would be required. 764 and 769 will certainly have made an impression when they entered service as they were painted in special powder blue and off-white liveries to celebrate the Coronation (the two liveries were not identical). These liveries featured streamlined swoops, rather reminiscent of Manchester's pre-war Streamliners.
The seating was increased to 58 in the mid-fifties, this differed from Bradford's own which had become 59 seaters. The difference will have been a consequence of the staircase fitted to these vehicles which was a bit similar to a Roe safety staircase, something that was apparently a fairly standard Balfour Beatty feature (Balfour Beatty owned Notts & Derby until nationalisation). Otherwise the vehicles saw little change, the main one being that some had a standard Bradford destination display fitted instead of the original one masked to suit Bradford's requirements.
The first of these was withdrawn in 1962 with the final one (760) being withdrawn in January 1964. Most were stored for nearly four years, as a consequence of which 770 and 774 survived into preservation, something that would not have happened otherwise.
© David Beilby
