M.EYRE / C.HEAPS
Two cities bordering each other is something unique in the United Kingdom, Salford, the smaller of the two undertakings in bus terms, was around 1/5 the size of the Manchester fleet with, in the 1950s, around 320 and 1500 buses respectively. The book is subtitled A Century of Municipal Transport but does not set out to be a history of the two transport companies and thus covers the while gambit of municipal transport from horse power to the Mancunian via trams and trolleybuses. The book is crammed with illustrations, informative text and appendices. Manchester tended to take its vehicles from local suppliers such as Leyland and Crossley whilst Salford were not so rigorous and purchased buses from further afield, e.g. AEC. Manchester were also able to use their larger buying power to standardise their buses, e.g. the pre-war streamliners and post-war Mancunians. Interestingly Salford ordered 20 Mancunians but these were not delivered until SELNEC had taken control. Like London, Manchester also ran double deck coaches from the City Centre to the Airport, and these were based on Leyland Tiger Cub chassis. Manchester also borrowed Routemasters from London Transport in 1963 but no orders were forthcoming.