Wigan Album

You've got that right Dennis, although I had PCV entitlement until recently I wouldn't have done that job for a gold pig.

When I am forced to travel home with someone using foul language every other word, I often wish we had bus conductors back.

This will sort the men out from the boys. Indicators that don't cancel, no power steering, very small rear view mirrors, no clutch assistance, no room, one windscreen wiper, crash gearbox need I go on.

PSV public service vehicle.

I think they have a difficult job myself though I have a friend who went back to bus driving recently after a break of several years and he loves it.

PCV, passenger carrying vehicle. Do try to keep up to date Garry.

Garry - you're wrong about the gearbox - it was synchromesh, except on 1 and reverse. Unless you had to use it on a hill, 1 was ignored, and you drove in 2-4. They started off very easily in 2nd - in fact, I've push-started a PD2 in second... having run alongside to jump in the cab to put it in gear once it was rolling. I hasten to add that that was on Burtonwood airfield, not on the road.
One problem with them was the gap around the pedals - a real draught used to sweep in, despite the leather socks around the pedal stalks.
Thankfully, they were usually governed to 43 mph - their brakes were awful, and needed constant adjustment. When I was a guard on Liverpool buses the drivers on the second shift often asked for a replacement bus because of brake fade. It was a good job roads were not as crowded in those days.

No I'm NOT wrong about the Gearbox at all.
At that time it WAS PSV PUBLIC SERVICE VEHICLE.
Never mind I'm wrong!

1st gear can't be ignored if you've got a bus load of passengers on board and hill start, that Wigan and district has. They all didn't slip the clutch you know.

Garry - I owned and drove enough PDs to know what gearbox I was using - they were synchro on 2-4. That it still paid you to double de-clutch between all the gears anyway is neither here nor there. I only drove a non-synchro bus once - and that was a completely different experience. As for starting in 2nd - if you started in 1st, you had to shift up as soon as the bus was moving, double de-clutching as you did. That's a lot of effort for little gain - so you'd start in 2nd at every opportunity.
PSV and PCV are not interchangeable - PSVs were not just driving licences - conductors also had PSV licences (but I don't think there's an equivalent to the driver's PCV). PSVs were only granted if you were of good character (I'm not sure what the boundaries were, though) - which is why conductors had them too, because they dealt with the public. PCV describes the vehicle type you're licensed to drive - it need not be for carrying the public generally - just passengers, rather than goods.

Garry for P.M.

Give us all a well earned break from your nonsense, Garry.