PRESERVATION UPDATE
TO GATHER IN COUNTY OF THEIR BIRTH
One of the biggest events in this year’s half century celebrations of the Leyland National will be in the historic county of Cumberland — part of Cumbria today — where more than 7,700 were built over a 14-year period.
The Workington Transport Heritage Trust is hosting the gathering in the Georgian town of Whitehaven on the Saturday and Sunday of the early spring bank holiday weekend, April 30 and May 1. That was where the first pre-production Leyland National — Cumberland Motor Services 350 (ERM 35K) — entered service in March 1972. It also is just 6miles south-west of the Lillyhall site, south of Workington, where Leyland established the factory to build the bus in a joint venture with the state-owned National Bus Company (NBC).
The trust — which also is partnering the Transport Museum Wythall to stage another major gathering of Leyland Nationals at the British Motor Museum at Gaydon on July 3 — hopes to attract up to 50 vehicles to the event.
While Cumberland 350 no longer exists, the trust owns a 1973 Leyland National from the Cumberland fleet, 353 (GRM 353L), which began life as a dualdoor vehicle but was converted to singledoor layout. The fir…
