Stratford Blue Rebodied Leyland PS2 JUE 349

1960s REBUILD FROM SINGLE-DECKER TO DOUBLE-DECKER

Stratford Blue was a subsidiary of Midland Red, but pursued its own vehicle purchasing policy, stocking up with new Leyland Titan PD2 double-deckers and Leyland Tiger PS2 single-deckers in the immediate post-war period. Half-cab single-deckers were outmoded by the end of the 50s yet their chassis and running units were far from expired.

Fellow BET company Yorkshire Traction had already begun converting some of its Leyland Tigers by refurbishing the chassis and having new double-deck bodies fitted. This effectively provided a new bus without the cost of a more up-to-date chassis. Yorkshire Traction assisted Stratford Blue in converting five of its vehicles, one with a Roe body in 1961, and four with Northern Counties bodies (with then
fashionable offside illuminated advertising panel) in 1963. JUE 349 is one of the latter. Its fleet number was changed from 51 to 33 when rebodied.

Stratford Blue Motors had since 1935 been owned by BMMO (Midland Red), but for reasons best known to that unique operator, it permitted Stratford Blue to operate independently. However on 1 January 1971 the major operator took the smaller into its fold and quickly repainted its vehicles into red livery. In July 1971, 33 (and two sisters) were sold to G & G coaches of Leamington Spa. where it remained in service until 1981. By now its chassis was thirty-one years old and its body eighteen years old.

Preservation
JUE 349 was retained by G & G and restored by local enthusiasts between 1985 and 1987, but suffered a wanton vandal attack that undid all those efforts; every piece of glass was smashed, a fire started inside and graffiti daubed on the interior. Stored for a number of years, it was thus in a rather sorry state when it came to Transport Museum Wythall on 4 May 1996. Fortunately, extensive restoration work by a dedicated team of our volunteers, which began in earnest in 2015, was largely complete by late 2021. Its brushed repaint and full signwriting of fleet information and Flowers Beer ads was completed in 2024.