Veterans of region's roads to go on show at museum

Bus operator First has donated the two distinctive cream and blue buses, which entered service in the late 1950s and were used in service until the 1970s, to the South Yorkshire Transport Museum in Aldwalke, Rotherham.

Previously the buses were parked up at First's Midland Road depot in Rotherham but now will be displayed for bus enthusiasts to see.

Brandon Jones, deputy managing director for First in South Yorkshire, said: "We are glad to donate these buses, which represent a genuine piece of South Yorkshire transport history, to allow more people the opportunity to view them.

"Both buses have been passed through many owners, eventually to First South Yorkshire, which has now donated them to the museum via the South Yorkshire Preservation Group."

One of the buses, number 1156, is a Leyland PD2/30 bus with a 59 seat double-deck body and was built in Leeds. It entered service in 1958 and usually operated on routes from Sheffield to Barnsley, Bradford, Leeds, Doncaster and Gainsborough.

Bus 904, meanwhile, is a Leyland PD3/1 bus with a 69 seats and was also built in Leeds. It entered service in 1959 and mainly operated in the Sheffield area.

South Yorkshire Transport Museum is run by the South Yorkshire Preservation Group, which is made up of bus enthusiasts.

The double-decker buses will now be on view to the general public on Saturdays, with special event days one Sunday a month, and at the annual Sheffield Transport rally at Meadowhall.

This year's first event day was held at the museum last Sunday, March 14, and the next one will be held on Easter Sunday, April 4. Admission costs 3.50 for adults and 2 for concessions.