Double-decker buses in Melbourne

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45-Column-Carlton-History-1.jpg
Jeff Atkinson

For 14 years, from 1940 to 1954, the streets of Melbourne and its inner northern suburbs had double-decker buses operating along them. 

Interestingly, these buses were operated by the Melbourne & Metropolitan Tramways Board (M&MTB) and carried the same green and cream colour scheme as Melbourne’s trams.

Why was the Tramways Board operating buses? The reason was that this was a transition period in which Melbourne was changing over from a cable tram system to electric trams. 

Cable tram routes began to be closed in 1925 and the last one ceased operating in 1940. When a cable tram route was closed, it was usually replaced soon afterwards by an electric tram service. But on some routes for various reasons the cable trams were replaced by buses instead. 

For example, when the Rathdowne St cable tram route in Carlton ceased operating in 1936, it was replaced by an M&MTB bus service. The last electric tram routes were not completed until the mid 1950s. 

Most of the M&MTB buses used on former cable tram routes were single-deckers, but on some routes that were heavily patronized, a double-decker bus was used instead. 

This occurred on two routes that ran along Bourke St – one from the city to Northcote via Smith St, Queens Parade and High St (present day tram route 86), and one that ran along Nicholson St to East Brunswick (present day tram route 96). 

These were among the last of the cable trams routes to be closed. They were replaced by double-decker bus services, which began operating in October 1940 and ran until the routes were finally electrified in the mid-1950s. 

The double-deckers were however not particularly popular with passengers. People did not like having to climb up and down the stairs, especially if their journey was short or they had limited physical ability. 

The buses carried fewer people than electric trams and were really too small to handle peak-period passenger numbers. This led to over-crowded conditions and passenger dissatisfaction.

It was not until March 1954 that work began on converting these two Bourke St bus routes to electric tramways. The Northcote tram route was completed in June 1955 and the East Brunswick route in April 1956. 

The double-decker buses that were retired from these routes were by this stage completely worn out, each having travelled an average of 430,000 miles (690,000 kilometres) during its years of operation. They were sold off by the M&MTB, and many ended up as farm trucks, sheds or extra accommodation at holiday homes. •

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