BTS Collection
Huddersfield 619
Registration Number : KVH 219
Chassis: BUT 9641T (3 axle)
Chassis No. 9641T601
Motor : English Electric Type 410A (150 hp)
Bodywork: East Lancs H40/32R
Length 30ft 0in, Width 7ft 6in.
Unladen Weight : 9tons 14cwts 2qtrs
Entered Service : 4 January 1957
Withdrawn : 30 May 1968
HISTORICAL DETAILS
Between 1953 and 1957, Huddersfield Corporation purchased two batches of 12 BUT9641Ts with East Lancs72 seat capacity bodywork. The first batch (607-618) entered service in 1953 whereas the second batch (619-630) entered service in 1956/57. 619 was the last of all to enter service on
4 January 1957.
In its early years, the rear bumper was removed. and in the early 1960s the front bumper was removed, and the front dash panel was split into two half panels with provision for a fog-light to be attached on the bottom nearside corner.
Huddersfield 619 is seen at Marsh where the Lindley and Outlane services merge in the mid 1960s. Photo Tony Belton
619 was withdrawn from service on 30 May 1968 because its road fund license had expired, and it was close to the system being abandoned. It was the second vehicle of the 1956/7 batch to be withdrawn following 625 which was withdrawn from service in February 1967 following an accident.
Following the closure of the system on 23 July 1968, 619 was purchased by the BUT Preservation Fund, a group within the Huddersfield Trolleybus Preservation Society. It was subsequently accommodated in an open field at Meltham until 4 January 1969 when it was towed to Huddersfield and then on to Teesside the following day,where it operated on an enthusiast’s tour on Sunday
12 January 1969.
On the following Sunday 619 was towed to Rastrick where it remained for a few months before moving to Baildon in June 1969. With purchase of the land for the proposed museum at Sandtoft nearing completion, 619 was moved to Barry Dodds’ yard in Belton on 4 October 1969. Finally, it moved into secure accommodation at Sandtoft on 1 November 1969, the second vehicle on site following Reading 193.The Huddersfield Trolleybus Preservation Society was renamed West Riding Transport Society (WRTS) in 1970.
619 became the first vehicle to operate with passengers at Sandtoft on 12 September 1971, using battery power.However, once the overhead had been erected and power supplied by a diesel generator in 1972, 619 was used sparingly as the weight of the vehicle was heavy enough to put a strain on the diesel generator.
The WRTS was split between motorbus and trolleybus factions and resulted in 619 transferring to the newly formed West Yorkshire Transport Circle (WYTC) in 1974.
In 1984 the National Trolleybus Association was seeking to reduce its fleet of preserved trolleybuses, and this resulted in Huddersfield 541 passing to WYTC on long-term loan. At the same time the West Yorkshire County Council was setting up its museum at Low Moor, Bradford and was interested in a Huddersfield trolleybus. The WYTC proposed that they should have 619 and that 541 should take its place at Sandtoft.
On 8 November 1984, 619 departed from Sandtoft and was taken to Ludlam Street depot in Bradford where it was stored before eventually going to a new operational trolleybus museum known as Transperience at Low Moor. The museum opened in July 1995 but sadly closed in 1997 due to lack of funds. Following the demise of Transperience the ownership of 619 was taken over by four members of the former West Riding Transport Society, as the West Yorkshire Transport Circle had merged with the British Trolleybus Society at the end of 1990 and therefore did not exist. 619 returned to Sandtoft on 1 August 1998.
Photo shows 619 departing Transperience
In early 2000 work commenced on returning 619 to operational condition, which included an external repaint. It re-joined the operational fleet in 2001 and was used regularly now that the electricity supply was obtained from the mains electricity rather than a diesel generator.
The owners of 619 took the decision to secure 619s long term future and donated it to the BTS, with effect from 1 April 2022.
Huddersfield 619 is seen being handed over to the BTS in a ceremony at Sandtoft on 17 April 2022.