The Trust membership scheme currently has almost 300 members who share an interest in Ribble Motor Services and the work we do to preserve the company’s history. The annual subscription is £25 and members receive a full colour magazine four times a year as well as access to our members Facebook page and the chance to participate in our work.
You can apply for membership by completing the application form via the Contact Page
As well as supporting our overall aims members also have the chance to work directly with the Trust. A whole range of opportunities awaits – some members work regularly at our depot on vehicle preparation, regular maintenance and vehicle restoration. We have plenty of tasks for those with specific skills and those who help in a more general way. Others help out at events by conducting on the bus service, carrying out marshalling, talking to visitors. There’s plenty of enjoyment as well as hard work and a lot of satisfaction in helping a restoration project to completion or successfully delivering a major event.
If you would like to know more and possibly take a look around do get in touch.
1775 Leyland PD3 / Met-Cam
Reg: RCK 920
Chassis: Leyland PD3/5
Body: Metro-Cammell FH72F
Built: 1962
After buying 100 Atlantean service buses in 1959-60 Ribble caused a surprise by reverting to PD3s. These had full fronted Met-Cam bodies which echoed the earlier Burlingham examples. A batch of 50 in 1961 was followed by 45 in 1962, and 36 in 1963. 1775 was one of the 1962 batch.
Initially allocated to Chorley 1775 moved to Fleetwood in 1968. These PD3s were particularly associated with city services in Liverpool and Carlisle and 1775 duly migrated to Bootle depot in 1973. Withdrawn in 1981 and sold to dealer PVS of Barnsley it was then acquired for preservation by the Mersey & Calder Group. It was later sold to Gerald Boden for continued preservation. It was then acquired for the RVPT collection in 2010 and has been a regular performer for the group since then.
Unlike the Burlingham PD3s the Met-Cam buses were equipped with pneumocyclic gearboxes but when Gerald refurbished it a synchromesh gearbox was substituted. Shortly after joining RVPT the original gearbox was overhauled and refitted returning the bus to its original configuration.