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%2c_30_September_2011_(2).jpg) Preserved Massey bodiedLeyland Titan in September 2011 | |
| Parent | Corporation of Birkenhead |
|---|---|
| Founded | 12 July 1919 |
| Ceased operation | 1 December 1969 |
| Service area | Birkenhead |
| Service type | Bus operator |
Birkenhead Transport was a bus operator inBirkenhead. It commenced operating on 12 July 1919 with a service fromRock Ferry toBirkenhead Park station, this service was extended toMoreton in the August of that year. The buses supplemented an earlier tram service.
In 1860,Birkenhead on theWirral Peninsula had become the first town in Europe to operate a street tramway. It was started byGeorge Francis Train, an American, when he laid track fromWoodside Ferry toBirkenhead Park Main Entrance and ran a horse drawn car service. On 4 February 1901, the Corporation of Birkenhead ownedBirkenhead Corporation Tramways commenced operating, first toNew Ferry and later around the town. It closed on 17 July 1937.
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Birkenhead's first livery on trams and buses was maroon and cream with a white roof, but in 1934 Birkenhead's famous blue and cream livery was applied to a newAEC Q-type double-deck bus. It was the only one of its type operated by the corporation but the blue and cream livery was applied to all future delivered buses withBirkenhead Corporation Motors applied in gold on the lower cream band.
In 1951, the Transport Department was reorganised, with the bus and ferry departments merging. A slight livery change gave more cream coverage around the lower deck windows and the legend was changed to readBirkenhead Transport. White roofs had been overpainted blue during the war and with this revised livery the white roof was never re-applied. The blue was named Cerulean by the paint makers "Docker Bros of 1935", and the cream was the same as applied to the trams, named Birkenhead Corporation Cream.
During the 1950s and 1960s the average size of the Birkenhead fleet was 225 buses, the last traditional British half cab buses delivered to Birkenhead in 1967 were 15 Leyland Titan PD2/37 models with Massey 66 seat bodywork. Massey Brothers bodywork had been frequently selected by the Transport Department since 1931.
On 1 December 1969, the municipal fleets ofLiverpool, Birkenhead andWallasey came together as a result of theTransport Act 1968, to form theMerseyside Passenger Transport Executive.[1]
In 1994, the brand and livery were revived byGM Buses when it was engaged inbus war withMTL. It ceased in June 1995.
