jp4712
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Stagecoach Manchester have donated their 17612 (T612MNF) to the Museum of Transport. It was Stagecoach's first Dennis Trident, and its first low floor double decker, outside London. https://www.facebook.com/motgm/posts/3507661455949403
The Museum has published a press release that says:
The Museum has published a press release that says:
First of the low makes return journey
Back in 1999, the Museum of Transport Greater Manchester held an ‘accessible transport’ event with help and displays to enable less-mobile visitors to sample the preserved buses whose high floors and steep steps made them hard to experience. And to highlight the progress being made, Stagecoach Manchester brought along the very first of its new generation of something called a ‘low floor’ double deck bus with no entrance steps and easier access. It was their number 612, a Dennis Trident with Alexander body, brand new and yet to enter service.
Fast forward to 2021 and that very same bus is back in the Museum again – as a preserved exhibit, kindly donated and delivered by Stagecoach Manchester to represent the new generation of buses with better accessibility. Now 17612 and after use as a driver trainer, at the age of 22 years it enters the growing ranks of preserved buses from the turn of the century and in due source it’ll be returned to the iconic ‘Starsky & Hutch’ stripes livery.
Museum Chairman Dennis Talbot said the Museum is delighted with the donation: “we’re very grateful to our friends at Stagecoach for donating such a historic vehicle. Outside London we believe it was Stagecoach’s first low-floor double decker, and their first Dennis Trident, to enter service. And the fact that it was displayed in the museum when it was brand new just brings everything full circle.”
612 has already been delivered to the Museum after safety and maintenance checks by Stagecoach, and in due course it’ll be returned to its original livery. Dennis commented: “bus preservation doesn’t stop in 1969, or 1986 – each generation has its own memories and we must move along with that. This is our second 1990s acquisition and we can really say we cover over a century of bus transport, from an 1890 horse bus to a 1999 Stagecoach. We’re really looking forward again to opening our doors and welcoming visitors to share in the amazing collection we have here.”