A classic - if not fantastically in focus - view of the famous (almost iconic) Skid Pan at Chiswick Works on November 12 1979.





It almost looks as if RM 2079 has a platform door fitted but the illusion is caused by a new Metrobus in the background.

The surface was smooth tarmac onto which was sprayed water with a detergent content to provide a slippery film enough to ensure a reasonably mild `slide` for a trainee with the object being to bring the bus to a safe, controlled halt within the yellow box using `cadence braking` designed to prevent full lock up of wheels. Of course, as we all know from the many video`s taken from the edge of the Skid Pan, an experienced Skid Instructor could go way beyond a mild slide into something approaching `bus acrobatics` - but trainees were not permitted to do anything of the sort..........

Not all of the buses regularly to be found at the Training School carried L plates - as can be seen in this picture. At least one example of each type of bus in the fleet was kept there as a `Type Trainer` in order that a newly qualified driver would gain experience on vehicles types that he or she might be expected to drive once placed at an operational garage. For example, a driver training on an RM might be allocated to a garage that operated both RM`s and RML`s. With the latter being a longer bus and slightly different to handle, the staff record would have to be endorsed with a record of training on an RML having been completed. The official position was that it was not permissible to get into the cab of any bus that training hadn`t been given on even to the point of an RM driver not being allowed to move a DMS or whatever that might be parked in his/her way. It probably goes without saying that in practise it happened and it sometimes ended badly. Those not familiar with air throttles and door/gear/throttle interlocks often found out the hard way that not every bus behaved as calmly as a Routemaster!

Thanks for another great pic Neil. Do you know when a RM took over Skid Bus duties? I went through Chiswick in Jan 1979 and it was still a RT. As I recall you had to do 3 runs, first hit the brake hard, second yank the handbrake on then third pump the brakes. Full brake lock up would send you left, handbrake would send you right and pumping would pull you up nice & straight. Although not part of the test a great chance to see what happened when you did something.

On my first run the instructor was sitting on the left telling me what to do; Go around the back, observe a couple of stop signs then accelerate onto skid pan. However, when I got to the skid pan unbeknown to me he had stood up, put his head into the cab and told me to hit the brake. As I had no idea he was behind me he gave me a helluva of shock, I came off the gas and fluffed it! He said “What are you doing?”, I said “I didn’t know you were there, you frightened the life out of me”! He wasn’t very happy and told me if I did it again he’d fail me.

Type training was interesting, all the types were written onto your driving record. When a garage got a new type every driver there had to be trained on it. Min 2 hours per driver, imagine the cost! Do you remember the RF trainer at Chiswick? It had obviously been there for years and was absolutely mint, inside & out. I often thought of where that ended up, I’d imagine someone got a fantastic bus.

You’re spot on about the importance of being aware of the vehicle you’re in. I remember at Upton Park once we had a driver on loan from Barking. At the time Barking only had OMO buses and RTs. He came in and was revving a RM when he selected 2nd gear, as you would in a RT, as nothing would happen until you operated. But of course the RM instantly went into gear and leapt forward into the platform of the bus in front.
He had been RM trained but after months of driving RTs had forgotten. There was a bit of broken glass and a few dents but imagine if someone had been walking between the buses, yikes. I was always a little bit more wary walking through the garage after that.

Hi Danny

I think the changeover from RT to RM as the standard bus on the Skid Pan really started to happen during 1979 as it logically would - given the end of RT`s in service. But logic didn`t enter into it as RT`s were still being used as trainers well into 1980 - at least a year after the type finished in normal passenger service. I could possibly have been the last person to be officially type trained on one, when, in 1980 I did a batch of types - RT, RML, SMS, T, M, LS, DMS and BL. The instructor who trained me on these was one of the last to use an RT as his regular bus.

But there was an overlap period of several years to around 1983 when RT`s and RM`s were used finishing up with the last two RT`s, 1530 and 2143 which were mainly for instructors putting on a show rather than for normal training. Allocated to Stamford Brook (as all Skid Buses were) they spent varying periods of time at the back of the garage singularly (rarely together) and were always taxed and ready for use. But simultaneous with these were a succession of RM`s - and RMC 1518. Some spent very short periods of time as Skid Buses - such as 2079 in the picture - and others much longer spells. RM 949 was one such and also 1041 which was latterly put back into normal service at Stamford Brook. Having spent so long parked outside and being regularly sprayed with soapy water, the paintwork was a lighter shade of red on the nearside and almost pink on the offside where the water jets routinely hit! It looked a mess and for its first few weeks back in service it carried driver training adverts having been dropped off the Advertising Department computer until reinstated thereon as a `service bus`.

And then came withdrawn (and very noisy) Leyland RM 1740. I never really found out how this bus came to be repainted and then fitted with adverts for Shell fuel for its long term role as Skid Bus. I`m going to guess that it may have been sponsored by Shell to be prominent at the Chiswick open day. Does anyone know more about this?

I recall asking about this at the time.

It was someone at Stamford Brook who also showed me how RM116 suspension system worked. Must have been a colleague of NT's 1740 just happened to be parked behind it at the time.

Shell used the bus as a demonstrator for it's non UK product range in a sales pitch to the transport industry but was aimed solely at overseas sales.

Apparently, it was filmed on the pan at Chiswick for a short film/commercial in the 1980s for overseas marketing use only.

Whether it had a single drop of Shell lubricants in it's entirety remains unanswered!
I think at the time, lubricants were being supplied to LT by rivals Exxon/Esso.

I did see film of it in action a few years back but have forgotten where and it's context.

RM 1740 appears on the skid pan in a film called Getting to Grips featured on a Beulah DVD called The London Bus which also contains Overhaul, The Nine Road and Omnibus 150. The aerial view shows that although the bus has been repainted it has had a 'monks haircut'.

My bus number (if any): RM 912

I recently posted the "on the buses" sketch of Butler (Reg Varney) and Blakey (Stephen Lewis) on the skid pan on my Facebook page, an absolute comedy classic. This prompted a response from an old friend whose father used to work at Chiswick. He later posted a super 8 cine film that his father had taken of RTW4 on the skid pan, showing several rums. there's also a shot taken from the front seat of the bus buy his grandfather!

ISTR being told many years ago never to try to preserve an ex skid pan bus, the offside timbers would be rotten where that side was always sprayed with water!

My bus number (if any): RML2532,GS67,MLL721,MLL738 and an RT.