The Short Story of London's Trolleybuses 

I used Trolleybuses about 20 years ago in Geneva and thought to myself "These make a lot of sense, probably why we don't have them back in the UK".

They should never have been got rid of. More practical than trams (no rails needed), and environmentally greener than ordinary buses. Getting rid of trolleybuses in our cities was one of the biggest transport mistakes we made in the 20th century. Very insightful video Jago. 👏

As a little kid, I remember the trams in Leicester. Mother did her best to avoid them as they were "too rough". In 1965 I went to Perth AU and they had a fantastic network of trolly busses. People including myself were upset at the loss of trolly buses being replaced by motorized buses. Melbourne never got rid of the trams and today the network is growing.

The Dutch city of Arnhem has been operating a trollybus network singe 1949. Currently there are 6 lines, in and around Arnhem, next to 6 more ordinary bus lines. In this age of electrically powered vehicles being all the rage the trolleybuses are considered quite modern. 😄

Glasgow's Trolleybuses gained the nickname "The Silent Death" thanks to their quiet motors and pneumatic tyres...there was a few accidents occurring over the years! They lasted here til 1967, 5 years after the last trams ran, and they didn't receive anywhere near the fanfare the last procession did for the tramcar. An unsung workhorse you could call them.

When I visited Seattle a decade ago I was pleasantly surprised to find their diesel buses switched to overhead power in the downtown area. To the people who might say power stations still burn fuel I say "yes but not in the street, you choose the location of a power station".

The "Oxford Street Plan" could have been implemented a lot easier than critics made out. Natural turning circles at Marble Arch and Holborn would have worked a treat and motor buses could have been taken off the road between the Tottenham Court Road end and the west end of Oxford Street. All sorts of excuses were put forward by the detractors as to why Trolleybuses should not be reintroduced, one of which even complained about Lots Road Power Station! Bring the wires back I say!

I used a trolleybus from Surbiton to Kingston every day at the start of my time at Grammar School. Poor maintenance was probably the cause of the frequent loss of connection at the 'points' in the power wires at a junction in the heart of Kingston, and the resulting, frequent, rush hour chaos. And then there was the problem of the 1938 batteries which were supposed to power the trolleybuses far enough to get them out the way when they broke down. Suffice it to say that a team of 11 and 12 year old schoolboys, myself included, have never forgotten what pushing a N°602 feels like. The battery problem would be much less of a problem today, better maintenance and improved detailing of the 'points' would be less of a problem today and the fast acceleration of the gear-free trolleybuses might speed daily commutes. All that said, however, the inflexibility of any system dependent on a physical electrical connection remains. In the case of the Croydon trams, much of their routes was formed from pre-existing railway routes and was thus already separated from other traffic and also thus they've worked very well. The DLR had the same advantages. Elsewhere in London, no obvious further easy gains for trams or trolleybuses present themselves but maybe, just maybe, both may have a future in other UK conurbations where existing provisions have been allowed to decay. Edinburgh comes to mind, maybe with the never-to-be-completed Edinburgh tramways to be, at least in part, completed with trolleybuses. Now, there's a thought.

I loved living along a trolley bus route in San Francisco, which still has dozens of trolley bus routes. The ghostly 'tish' sound along the wires, when the bus was a few blocks away, meant it was time to get my arse outside and towards the stop on the corner (14th & Castro, for the 24, in case you're wondering), and the same sound was soothing to fall asleep to. I'd say this is one of your most comprehensive videos. I loved it.

I remember the trolleybuses in Bournemouth, and in particular the final runs in 1969. The need for a turning circle was eased at the Christchurch end of the line by the use of a turntable - one of only five in the world, according to Wikipedia. There are even some photos online showing it in use by buses in 'Bournemouth Corporation' livery - yellow with two maroon (?) bands. My mother, and various other members of my family, worked on the buses and trolley-buses, including the open-top trolleybuses (which I recall riding). I recall her telling me the story of her first day as a 'clippy' (as female conductors were known) on the trolleybuses. At the end of the line (presumably at the turntable) is was necessary to move the 'arms' from one overhead cable to another, and to do this the long pole with a hook was used (this was also needed if the arms came off the cable). The pole cane be seen in the video at 7:52 onwards. What they didn't tell her (and I suspect they did this to all newbies), was that there is a powerful spring pushing the arm up onto the cable. So once you have pulled down on the arm and moved it to one side, it is necessary to keep a firm hold of the pole to avoid the spring pulling it out of your hands and flinging it through the air like a javelin - inevitable the first time someone tries it, I suspect.

My grandfather used to work as an engineer out of the old Plumstead Garage during the days of the trolley bus and then RMs. The route 696 used to go from Woolwich to Dartford and near the top of our road was a tight bend after a straight run. If the buses had not slowed down for the bend they would unhook from the lines. This happened so much they stored a pole at the shop next to the bend (yes there was storage on the vehicles for a pole but they were usually missing). My grandfather also stole a pole with hook to keep the guttering on our house clear. Wickham hill on that route is fairly steep and the trolley buses used to take it in their stride, but the RMs used to struggle going up hill. I remember being a child and watching some one walk up the hill quicker than the RM I was on.

I personally think we shoul restore the trollybus to replace bus routes. A trolly bus is more environmentally friendly than even a hybrid or an electric bus, as batteries only return about 70% of the energy you put into them. That's a 30% loss of energy the trolly bus does not encounter, in addition to not needing to haul around a large and extremely heavy rare earth battery whose construction was both exceedingly expensive and which significantly poisoned the planet. By comparason, a trollybus needs no rare earth batteries, as it can make do with cheaper simpler batteries for it's short hop with long charge times.

You’re right, the earliest trolleys were known by their drivers as “diddlers” because, unlike the earlier trams, they could diddle about in the traffic. I used to live in Goodmayes, quite close to Fulwell Cross (not Fulwell), the end of Route 691. Our local trolleybus service, the 663, ran East along the A118, (Goodmayes) High Road, to Chadwell Heath, where it turned off right, round a one-way road triangle via Station Road and Wangey Road, where it terminated near the Gaumont Cinema before heading back along the High Road towards Aldgate, London. I remember my Mum taking me one day to wave goodbye to our last trolleybus, which I guess was about 1960. After that, we were served by the No. 86 bus, a Routemaster, which went all the way to Romford. I think there was also a Service 193, usually with RT traction. Thanks for a very interesting overview of the “Trolleys”.

South Yorkshire PTE had a trolly bus built in 1985 which was tested on its own track and deemed successful, however I believe deregulation of the bus services put pay to plans to reintroduce them. It now resides at the Trolly Bus museum at Sandtoft, Lincolnshire which is well worth a visit.

Thanks as ever Jago! I grew up in Brentford and used to go to school on the 657 trolleybus, so imagine my pleasure in seeing your pictures of a trolleybus from my youth! I have fond memories of the trolleybuses in West London. They had many advantages, their only serious disadvantage being that they couldn't pass each other without lowering their collector arms. Many will remember having waited for an overdue trolleybus only to find three or even more turn up together because of some traffic hold up. The first one would be packed, and the others would be nearly empty. Having said that though, they could seat more passengers than the diesel buses and were considerably quieter. We need them today, as you suggest. They were well before their time in terms of their low pollution and noise levels. Whilst the British may not be thinking of bringing them back, our colleagues on the Continent simply don't have the same mindset. Alongside the vast number of modern tram networks, many cities have modern trolleybuses - look no further than Riga, Bern, Luzern, Salzburg, etc. etc. Even San Francisco has trolleybuses. By comparison, we do tend to be blinkered when it comes to public mass transport don't we?

There is a section of trunk road in Germany that has wires overhead to allow charging of electric lorries en route. This allows much smaller batteries to be fitted with improvements in payload and economics. Perhaps the same could be applied in cities to electric busses, sections of the route being electrified and the busses carrying enough battery capacity to drive between them. My parents lived in Croydon during the trolleybus era and thought they were terrific.

In the 1950/60s I lived in Tolworth - opposite the terminus of route 601 (Tolworth - Twickenham via Surbiton, Kingston, Teddington and Fulwell) and often travelled this route as my mother had a friend who lived near Kneller Hall (Whiton). I loved the fierce (but smooth) acceleration of the trollybus. In the 1970s and 80s (having spent ten years in banking) I decided on a change of career and I learnt to drive buses (RTs, RMs, RFs, Metros and others) first out of Kingston, then Norbiton, then Fulwell garages. In the 1990s, after a break of six years from public transport, in 1999 I joined Tram Operations (a year before the system opened to the public) and became one of the first dozen drivers on that system. later assisting in the training of new drivers. So this video holds many memories for me as I have connections with much of it.

Thank you for giving the trolley bus a quick step into the limelight. As I understand it my home town Belfast had the second biggest trolley bus network in the UK and I remember using them during my childhood. As you said, they never seemed to gather the affection or following of lots of other mass transport types but I always think of them fondly. The driver using the gigantic bamboo to replace the pantograph if it slipped off the wire was quite the spectacle for a wide eyed child of the time. Thanks again, I really enjoyed that.

My father was a trolley bus driver in Newcastle upon Tyne. I remember them with great affection. In terms of making a comeback, especially on the streets of London, I fear their time has passed. The arrival of the completely electric (battery powered) bus means we now have the best of both worlds. A "clean" power source and the ability to divert around obstacles and incidents at will. In many respects the experience of riding an electric bus is not dissimilar to riding a trolley bus.

In Bolton in the North West we used to have a large tram network that had no maintenance during world war II for obvious reasons, however this meant afterward half the line was unusable so they went to trolleybuses, then to normal buses. Therefore we have no trams and everyone hates the public transport we have now. Yet if you go to the next town over that is part of the Manchester metrolink tram service, public transport is well liked there.

On the last day of London trolleybus operation the Diddler (No 1 though there was some doubt as to whether it really was No 1) was brought out of retirement at the Clapham Museum as Jago suggests. Local notables were conveyed from Fulwell to Kingston in the middle of the afternoon. Sadly I was in school nearby that day so I missed it. On arrival at Kingston it was towed back to Clapham. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-0-9IjiEvxmA.html is a record of the event. The actual last trolleybus was on the 604 route from Wimbledon to Hampton Court and thence to Fulwell. Scheduled to arrive at around midnight it was over an hour late as the streets were blocked by well over 1000 people who had come to witness the event. The last bus was packed (I'm guessing that, theoretically it was supposed to have been empty) and, as it finally drew into the forecourt of the depot, every lightbulb was stolen - perhaps a few are still on somebody's mantlepiece. Of course since it all happened in the early hours of the next morning, this time I wasn't in school.

Happy memories of the 607 trolleybus. It had been the number 7 tram route, and became the 207 Routemaster route. The future is electric.

These should come back. A modern trolleybus could have enough battery power on board to reroute around disruptions and the ability to reconnect to the wires automatically without stopping, but wouldn't have to have the massive battery packs required to run entirely without wires. The wires could also be used for other municipal vehicles like garbage trucks and snow plows, maybe even delivery trucks.

En route to live back in England in 2002 (for what turned out to be four and a half years), we stopped over in Vancouver. Guess what they had running along outside our hotel as part of what seemed to be a thriving inner city service? Single deck trolley buses! They seemed as normal a phenomenon as Melbourne's trams (we're back in Oz now), so presumably they're still running around in this new super-eco-aware era. I sincerely hope so, it was mesmeric and very nostalgic to see them swing gracefully in and out of their stop at the adjacent crossroads and then flow sinuously around the corner. Took me right back to West Croydon bus station back in the day..

Leeds City Transport ran a fine fleet of trams. Mum and I used to catch one at Compton road/Harehills lane for trips into Leeds and a little train spotting at Central station. Moving to huddersfield in 1962, I enjoyed 1d rides on their fine 6 wheeler trolleys to school and back, taking great enjoyment and entertainment watching a hapless connie trying to capture the tentacles with a very large bamboo pole. I was sad to see them go in 1968 along with my beloved steam trains. Emigrating to Australia I and friends acquired an AEC regent III from Chullora bus depot and spent six years living in it and touring Australia. This led to lifetime employment as a bus driver in Yorkshire, Queensland and Western Australia before starting my own bus charter business running ex wa govt. Mercedes’ and Leyland panther buses. This video pleased me immensely and I only wish I had not filmed more for myself. Thank you

I travelled on the last 630 from West Croydon to Mitcham. We were closely followed by another trolleybus showing 'Private'. Next day the 630 route was replaced by the 220 and 64 using the then new Routemasters. The northbound 630 was noted for its oddly imprecise destination: 'Near Willesden Junction'. I believe the term 'trolleybus' derived from the early power pickup being a four-wheeled trolley running along the top of the wires with a cable hanging down between them pulling the trolley along, rather than sprung poles with wheels running below as universally adopted. The trolleybuses running from Bournemouth to Christchurch in Dorset had a turntable for reversing at the end of the route: the conductor would pull down and hook the poles, then he and the driver would push the whole lot round to face the other way, before re-wiring the poles and setting off back to Bournemouth. Where a route diverged, the overhead wires had their own 'points' which were switched if necessary by the driver applying power at a certain distance from the junction; in heavy traffic the unavoidable stopping and starting could lead to incorrect switching and de-wiring, so some busy junctions had the overhead points some distance from the change of route, allowing the driver to trigger the route change in advance and run on a parallel pair of wires to the junction.

Great, a video on trolley busses 🙂 I happen to live in a city where they still run! Here they were actually introduced after WWII to replace the heavily damaged tram network whilst retaining the electrical infrastructure. One of the other draws over diesel busses at that time was probably that the city, Arnhem, is one of the few places in the Netherlands where we happen to have some hills and electric vehicles offered an advantage in terms of acceleration. Over the years off-course many plans came and went to abolish them, only recently for busses running on bio-gas (ugh...), due to higher operating cost. But their distinctively light blue livery and uniqueness in this part of Europe has made them a bit of a local pride. More recently new trolley busses have been ordered with larger electric batteries on board have that can significantly the routes, so I think the future may look bright here for the trolley bus 😀

I was born in 1955, but can clearly remember travelling regularly on the 630 Trolleybus with my mum from West Croydon to Earlsfield to visit an aunt. I must have only been about 5 or 6 years old. If memory serves me correctly that Trolleybus route was replaced by the 220 route using brand new Routemaster buses which replicated the 630 route, which was from West Croydon to Harlesdon. Years later in the late 1980's I worked with an older man who used to drive Trolleybuses for London Transport in his younger days.

I lived in Carshalton in the 1950s and I remember the trolley busses coming along our road. I can still picture the sparks that used to come off the pickups.

I do indeed remember trolleybuses with fondness. It was always a treat to watch the conductor replace a dislodged pantograph using a really long pole kept on board for the purpose.

I remember the trolleys on the Crystal Palace to Croydon route. At the palace there was a roundabout so a trolley buscoming up Anerly Hill could reverse ready to go back down. I never saw it myself but dewiring going round the roundabout wass not unknown. The was a bamboo pole kept on the roundabout for the purpose. Now the trolley busses did carry a pole slung underneath the chassis but to get it out required all the trafffic behind to be moved back 12 to 13ft to slide it out. Another interesting point is that Anerly hill is steep and the trolleybusses laid over facing down the hill. The handbrake was not relied upon and a concrete scotch was deployed

I don't remember trolleybuses in London, but I do remember them in Reading. They had the advantage of being quieter and not putting out fumes, but they did seem a bit quaint even to a child, as I was then.

Doncaster trolleybuses ceased in 1963, when I was still a lad living in Sheffield. When I came here in 1975 though, some Daimler CVG6s and Leyland Titan PD2s with Roe trolley bus bodies were still around. I also remember a few trolley bus journeys in Rotherham, the last one being a couple of weeks before abandonment in 1965. Going on holiday to Bournemouth in the mid 1960s gave an opportunity to ride on their system, (I liked the turntable at Christchurch), but I was more interested in the Hants & Dorset Lodekkas there. The trolleybus system in Wellington (NZ) operated until just a few years ago.

My father drove trolley buses, although not in London, and I remember him going off to work in the winter wearing many layers of clothing and big leather flying gauntlets as there was no heating in the driver's cab.

I lived in North London and rember them very well. They used to cause a big traffic jam at the end of my rd which was near a major junction of Trolley buses turning left or going straight on. The corner quite often resulted in the trolleys coming off the overhead cable and the conductor / driver had to get out and use a long pole to put them back on. This could cause quite a hold up. It was not unusual to see between 6 an 12 trolley buses queued up as they cannot pass each other.

I was born in 1957 and grew up in Hampton Hill (then still in Middlesex). I can remember the 667 trolleybus running from Hammersmith "Bdy" to Hampton Court and back. We used to catch it to go shopping in Twickenham. My main memory is how quiet they were. If not silent. They had replaced the trams on the same route, and were themselves replaced by the 267 and Routemasters.

Much of my misspent youth involved travel on trolleybuses 623 and 649 in the Tottenham area.

Near where I grew up is the former Chicago, Aurora, & Elgin Railway, an electric interurban line connecting those cities. It ceased operation in 1957 and was later converted into one of the first rail-trails in the country, the Illinois Prairie Path. One day I was cycling along the Batavia Branch and just happened to look up. These former lines are often used as the right-of-way for electric power lines, and indeed the CA&E was part of the electric empire of Samuel Insull, who also owned the Chicago North Shore & Milwaukee, the Chicago South Shore & South Bend, and Commonwealth Edison electric utility. He's a Londoner who came to Chicago, an inverted Charles Yerkes. But anyways, I look up, and on one of these poles, there is a suspender for a trolley wire. Still there after the rails were taken up the year my father was born.

Due to the torque characteristics of electric traction motors, these are highly suitable in hilly terrains such as Nottingham or Sheffield. Maximum torque at zero rpm and no vast local fumes that a fully loaded internal combustion engine creates in the same situation. PS: I rode on the last LT trolley bus for 20m as it pulled away from Wimbledon Town Hall; a policeman was just in front of me on the boarding platform - I had no choice other than get off - he was bigger than me !!

Travelling round eastern Europe I was impressed by this relatively simple and potentially green technology. A massive improvement to some streets in London that smell of bus diesel. As a life long Doctor Who fan my highlight was of course the TARDIS at 0:38 😯

Very enjoyable thank you Jago. We had double decker trolley buses imported from the U.K. in both Sydney and Adelaide during my youth. On the City route Potts Point to Town Hall and a Suburban System Rockdale and Kogarah to Dolls Point and Ramsgate. They replaced both a former steam tram and electric tram system. The City service was suspended a few years after the war but the suburban lines ran for another decade. I remember them fondly and when living in Chiswick London I took one home I think from near Trafalgar Square in 1962. Thanks for the pleasant memories.

Great video 👍🙂 Being a born and bred Jo'burg boy, I can remember the extensive trolley bus network, from the Jo'burg CBD to outlying leafy suburbs. Occasionally the pickup poles would jump the wire or gap, necessitating the grumpy conductor, getting out the long pole, stored underneath the bus, and using a combination of dexterity and fishing skills, reattach the offending pole, so that my journey to school or wherever could continue. Trolley busses were operated by the municipality and disappeared from the roads in the early 80's as more efficient diesel busses took over. You never forget that metallic hum & swish of the next trolley bus heading your way. Living in Edinburgh for quite some time, I've watched our 'tram' saga roll out, which has been a comedy of errors, second to none and will take many decades of paying them off.

Nottingham City Transport used trolleybuses well into the 60s. I was a regular user of them. From the suburbs of Wollaton Park to the City Centre it was the way to go. And so inexpensive too! Occasionally the poles that connected with the overhead wires would come off, but the bus conductor would simply drag out a long pole with a hook on the end to re attach them. In frosty weather the first buses of the day gave a spectacular display of sparks as they burned off the frost from the wires. Then they were replaced by motor buses, as fuel was cheap back then. Today Nottingham transport has gone back to using trams. Though I don't live there any more, I still fondly remember the old trolleybus!

A trolley battery hybrid is very practical idea. In the city center the overhead wires power the bus as well as recharging the batteries plus at the terminus a recharge station could be available . It's the recharge time of the batteries that is normally an issue but if all they have to do get to/from the city centre before being recharged as they go through the center (where most time is taken) then they become more feasible. A diversion where a major city centre route is involved is such a major upheaval temporary overhead power could be rigged?

I used to go shopping with my parents in the early 1950's and take the trolley bus from Friern Barnet to Wood Green.They were very quiet,and as a 5 year old I looked forward to this ride. I seem to recall one problem they had was that the poles connected to the overhead cables could come away and then had to be reconnected by the bus conductor and driver. This was often a struggle particularly in a strong wind.and passengers were not impressed when it happened several times on a short journey.

My town Hartlepool got it's trolley busses pretty early in the 1920's with them covering pretty much the whole town. Running up till the 1950's. Sadly nothing remains apart from the streets they ran down even the depot they were stationed at was demolished and now a car park for the railway station.

Whilst being slightly too young to remember the London ones I have been fortunate enough to visit San Francisco on many occasions and they have a most excellent Trolleybus network which was until fairly recently run mostly by the very quirky (and fast) Skoda ETI vehicles which were most agreeable imho. The fleet has been renewed and although it is now possibly slightly more mundane from an enthusiast point of view it remains a very efficient network covering some particularly demanding terrain with heavy loadings.

My mother worked in Warshaws builders merchants in Old Street during the war and mentioned the trolley buses. The upper story windows were protected by a mesh screen because the catenary pickup arms often became detached on the corner and hit the windows.

I remember riding in a trolley bus from Barking to East Ham once or twice. Other than that, it was always RTs. And I remember once seeing the driver or conductor taking a pole that was carried on the outside and replacing the trolley poles which had come off the overhead wires.

I remember catching trolleybuses in Bratislava, Slovakia in my first overseas trip from Australia in 2005. I had never seen anything like it! Melbourne's tram network is flourishing, and I thoroughly enjoyed travelling on them during a recent visit.

I went to Zurich once and they have a fantastic tram and trolleybus network, I wish we had the same in some British cities…

Great video. You can ride on a Trolley bus at the East Anglia transport museum at Carlton Colville, I went there a few years ago and it was a great day!

I can vaguely remember riding on a trolley bus with my Grandmother in the very late 50’s, early 1960’s. I was 3 or possibly 4, not yet at school. Wonderful machines. The last trolley bus I rode was in Moscow about 5 years ago. They have gone there, now, sad to say.

My Dad told me that when trolley buses first ran he took his first ride. He explained that due to the powerful acceleration his arm was almost pulled out of its socket !

I grew up with trolley type busses in the US. We simply called them busses, it was all there were. There may have been diesel busses in areas of the city ( Seattle) with high hills, but the routes I rode were all electric. I remember the sound the wires made when the bus was getting near. In my memory they ran until the early 70s in my inner city neighborhood.

Very interesting video Jago. The last trolleybus in London service was 1521 (FXH 521) Chassis less Metro-Cammell vehicle of 1940. Now preserved at The East Anglian Transport Museum. There was a plan to reintroduce Trolleybuses to the old Uxbridge road route to Shepherds Bush, but local Politian's were against any form of electric traction being used on the Uxbridge Road.

I started secondary school in September 1960, and distinctly recall travelling on trolleybuses (routes 653 and 627) from Finsbury Park to Camden Town each day before they were replaced by routemasters around 1961/2 and were renumbered 253 and 127.

The opening shot of a route 663 trolley bus was taken at Manor Park. Broadway in East London, and shows Romford Road, heading towards Ilford. This photo brings back memories of the late 1950s/early 1960s. The dental surgery I went to as a kid is still there, to the right of the trolley bus (I still go there!) and I remember looking out of the first floor window at traffic, including trolley buses passing by. The pole next to the Police Box (Tardis) on the left carried an air raid siren at its top (just visible in the photo), which was tested occasionally, that time being at the peak of the Cold War when we sort of expected to be nuked by Russia at any moment… Thanks for the memories, Jago!

A very good summary of the life and death of the London trolleybus Jago. Of course the newest ones were shipped overseas for further use. We had the second largest trolleybus system in Belfast and it was fun trying to catch up with them on my push bike going up and down the hills. Once London scrapped there system it became uneconomic for suppliers of equipment to carry on for the remaining municipal systems such as Bournemouth. Of course other countries have continued to use them and you can enjoy a ride on them in San Francisco for example.

Great video Jago. I recall the Bournemouth trolley buses. They were so much quieter and smoother riding than buses. The livery was yellow and when the council sold the network (in the 80s I recall), they wrote into the tender document that the successful bidder had to continue with the same livery. Maybe yellow was to reflect the sandy beaches!

I remember traveling on trolley buses in the 50’s and they were great. Would like to see them return.

Thanks for postingTrolley buses have been running for 74 years in Vancouver. In North Toronto there was the Nortown route which was active until 20 years ago.

It's such a shame we got rid of our tram networks across the country, espcially with them being a great solution to traffic issues, being sustainable and much more popular than other forms of transport.

You got my attention and I was your first up vote.

I remember the trolley buses in Maidstone, Kent when I was a kid in the late ‘50’s. They used to go past my house when we lived in Sutton Rd.

Until I was about 5 or 6 we lived in North London in Winchmore Hill. This was on the trolleybus route out to (from memory) Enfield and (as my dad took the family's only car to work) my mother and us kids were always on Trolleybusses to go shopping at larger shopping centres such as Palmers Green or Wood Green which were larger than our local one, or on visits to relatives who lived closer into the middle of London. I can still clearly remember some of the characteristics of the Trolleybusses. The quiet, smooth ride, the fantastic (as it seemed to me then) acceleration rate, far greater than I ever experienced in my dad's car! But I also remember there were multiple times when the overhead pickup wires "jumped" off the overhead wires and the bus stopped. Then, the crew had to get out very long wooden poles with a Y shaped hook on the end; these lived in a compartment that ran the length of the bus under the seating area. and the crew used the poles to reattach whichever of the pickups had jumped off the overhead wires. It was like a gigantic version of a fairground game! I can also remember multiple times when the bus halted at a bus stop and would not start again. When that happened, we were all ushered off the bus and told to "wait for the next one" and the crew had to get out the poles and detach the failed bus's pickups from the overhead wires (presumably to prevent it shorting out a section of overhead wire which would stop "the next one" ever reaching us! ). In such an event, the conductor would detach one of the long sideways seat cushions from a failed trolleybus and stand it on the road behind, propped up against the back of the bus - even if it was raining! I do remember my elders being pretty scathing about the trolleybusses reliability - but I also remember them lamenting them being replaced - so I suppose there was affection for them too!

I never knew that pole was there and I started my career working for 4 years in the building behind what is now the Enterprise van place so I must have passed that thing a good few hundred times. Oddly enough, I’m currently working for London Trams. I wonder how long the pole will last now that demolition of the buildings behind it has begun?

We had Trolleybuses in Maidstone until February, 2967 run by Maidstone And District and a sister company Hastings And District in Hastings. Remember riding on them as a child and the huge roundabout at the top of Nottingham Avenue was the turning circle.

Wow, watching this on valentines night after cooking a valentines meal with flowers and you have given me such a special valentines gift. What an absolutely fabulous history. I remember my dear mum talking about trolley busses when the pole fell off etc. This is so detailed. I get that you really enjoy what you do and it really shows. Thank you the mastermind of Transport. Xx

Belfast has electric powered double deck buses. I’ve ridden in one and loved it. The trolleybuses lasted from 1938 to 1968 and I used them for going to and from school in the 50s. I’d be more than happy to see the electric powered buses making up the majority of the fleet.

Been living near Fulwell depot for over 25 years and I never knew it was the site of the first and last trolleybuses. To be fair I hadn't really given trolleybuses much in the way of thought in my life but you'd think there'd be a little sign or plaque or something.

I remember the Bradford trollies very well resplendent in their blue livery. They were well suited to Bradford which is in a basin. You can't leave the city without going up a hill so an obvious choice over trams which couldn't cope with many of the gradients

I remember regularly taking the troller bus from Dudley to Wolverhampton as a child. I recall they were bright green and gave a really smooth, quiet ride. I certainly feel they’d be a good solution for cities today.

Thank you for this electrical short. Living in Harrow from my birth in 1946 to 1963, when my parents wrenched me away to live in Norfolk, meant that I travelled on trolleybuses on countless occasions. Quiet and quick, these vehicles were a particular favourite of mine along with the ubiquitous RT class buses. It was not until 1999 that I discovered the East Anglia Transport Museum in Carlton colville, near Lowestoft. Here you can still ride on these magnificent vehicles. There are trolleybuses and trams from Britain and other parts of the world (four London Trolleys and a London tram). I shall, hopefully, be getting my first fix this year at Easter followed by another four special events during the year. Your video will jog many memories for us lucky people who were there and were also saddened by the demise of the good old London trolleybus. Cheers Jago !

Shortly after the trams were replaced by trolleybuses, a woman was on her way back from the beer shop with her usual jug of ale. She waited patiently on the street corner for the tram to pass as usual, however trams had now been replaced with trolleybuses and, as it passed closer cutting the off the corner, she was left with a look of apprehension and just the jug handle in her hand. Story told by my grandfather but I wonder how many times this occurred.

The Leeds system only lasted between 1911 & 1928 on 3 routes & was not very successful. There was plans to bring them back as the "NGT" scheme in the early 2000's, but it never happened. The Bradford system lasted a lot longer, opening 4 days after the Leeds one and was the last operated system in the UK, closing in 1972.

Toronto used to have a few trolley bus routes, but these disappeared in the 1970s. The trams nearly disappeared at that time as well, until a massive public demonstration ensured that they remained. Vancouver still has trolley buses.

I can remember as a child in West Belfast, the Trolley Bus's at the top of our street. When the boom fell of the over head power cable ,the conductor had to get a pole out and hoist it back up. Something dangerous as they often got shocked! From memory it was a bamboo pole.This was in the mid sixties.

I can vaguely remember seeing trolley buses in Belfast in the 1960’s and there are films of the Belfast trollies to be found on RU-vid. I think it is a shame that they were removed from service.

I was convinced trolley buses ran for much longer as I can clearly remember them, turns out I was only just 4 years old when the last one went out of service....

Two items-1)In the New York area,the only operations of trolleybuses was in Brooklyn,and it was a rather extensive network! 2) Again in the US,trolley retrievers were used,and there were two ropes attached to the trolleypoles,which made it quite convenient for the conductors of the buses! One long time operator of trolleybuses is Dayton,Ohio! Those services are now,about 100 years old,and now,use hybrids,i.e,Diesel-Electric/Electric which is actually close to 150 year old technology! History repeats,and politicians don't read history! Thanks Jago,a most interesting sidelight on London,as it once was!! Thank you 😇!

As a child in the 60s I remember the trolley buses of Newcastle very well, and I preferred them over diesel buses. They were prone to coming off the wires though, and the conductor would have to get out to re-attach it.

I just remember trolleybuses from early childhood, although my grandmother didn't live in a part of London where they ran. We did, however, see them when going out of town. They really ought to bring them back - while they do have their limitations, they are far and away the least polluting kind of vehicle. After all, the batteries required to run an electric or hybrid bus or car are themselves very polluting

Thanks for the great video Jago. I enjoy all of your videos but this one especially so as it touches my main transport interest of buses, trams and trolleybuses. There is a theory that the 'Diddlers' were so nicknamed because their appearance (with half cabs rather than the usual full front) 'diddled' people into thinking they were motorbuses but I guess now we'll never know the true reason. After the war, LT only bought 127 new trolleybuses, the Q1 class with 77 in 1948 and a final 50 in 1952 and whilst the last vehicles ran into the early hours of 9 May, it is usually regarded that the last day of operation was 8 May 1962. Thanks again for the video and I wonder if you plan to do any more videos on the 1st generation of London Trams?

I remember the trolley buses in Reading ,in particular the ones that went to Tilehurst. I loved the sound and smell. They were finally dropped in 1968. I missed seeing them and the turning point. Thanks for you great films.

The trolley bus was a great excuse for the reason for being late to school (Perth, Western Australia) when the pole fell from the lines and the conductor had to get off the bus, get his big pole to get all back in order. Sadly, when I used the excuse it was never accepted. So many good memories…

Getting in on the ground floor seems to be essential for most double decker vehicles these days. :-)) Was that Harvey D Diddle who did the experimental US system? Would have explained why some London trolleys were called Diddlers. I can vaguely remember seeing Torlley Buses in Bournemouth sometime in the early 60s. They seemed odd to a very young me. I guess in London, surface transport has always been bedeviled by congestion which is why the underground (and railways) score heavily in their favour.

Trouble is, batteries are becoming so small and efficient, that there is less need for overhead wires, but I still think that there is an over reliance on batteries. Wire collection is the way to go in the future

I used to go to cubs on the trolley bus. Better than trams as no rails needed, just overhead supply. Clean, environmentally. It was 2d to go to cubs and 3d to go to town, ( this was obviously pre-decimalisation)Then all the electrical buses disappeared, until now when suddenly its highly desirable for everything to go electric. We also had battery powered milk floats. They still run trolley buses at the Black Country Living Museum in Dudley.

I just about remember travelling on a trolly in 1962 when I was five and we lived in Woodgreen in N. London. Very comfortable and smooth with a powerfull hum from the motor as the vehicle accelerated. Buses tended to be noisy and a bit rough.

Top video, Wrighty! I'm too young to remember them growing up in London. But they hung around in Bournemouth up till 1969 (the Apollo era!). I was 5 then, and clearly recall them going past my Grandparents' house, and being taken to see the them turning on the turntable in Christchurch. The poles and wires seemed to stay around for many years afterwards (including one badly-situated pole that partially obstructed my grandparent's driveway!).

Great video Jago

Ah, the days of getting the 607 from Uxbridge to Acton, quiet, fairly reliable, unlike the early RM which were noisy, and at first somewhat unreliable.

Thank you for this. Nice footage of Twickenham, Teddington and Fulwell garage. Despite living several decades in the area, I did not know the history.

I remember the Bomo trolleybuses when on family trips in the 1960s, was outraged to see them disappear. They had character.

Ah! A pole!

Here in Toronto we had trolleybuses until 1993. One interesting thing about them is how they ran on the same voltage as the streetcars and at a trolleybus and streetcar route intersection, the buses would run on one of its own wires and the streetcar wire until the routes diverged and then the buse would go back to its own two-wire system. I asked a TTC guy why the system was abandoned and he told me that the TTC could only support so many kinds of transit technology. You can still see the poles for it here and there. The trolleybus shed was demolished about 20 years ago and is now a storage yeard for gravel.

Remember the trolley buses in north London, went to school on them. The other snag with them was that parliament wouldn’t allow overhead wires in central London (that’s why trams used the conduit in inner London), so all the termini were on the fringes at Holborn, Moorgate, Aldgate, Paddington, Shepherds Bush, etc.

💯 4:10 Can YOU read signs with missing letters Reggie? I didn't get where I am today without being able to read a sign with missing letters!

they're introducing new "trambuses" on route 358 this year, which charge from a pantograph at the start and end of the route. I think battery technology has probably rendered the trolleybus a bit obsolete.