In the first of three articles celebrating 50 years of the Leyland National, ALAN MILLAR says that parallel developments in the operating and manufacturing industries persuaded Leyland to invest in a brand new factory and car manufacturing techniques to build a mass-produced single-decker for Britain and abroad
Preserved Leyland Nationals posed at the site of the Lillyhall factory, now an Eddie Stobart logistics depot, during the Workington Transport Trust’s two-day event at the early spring bank holiday to mark the 50 th anniversary of the type’s entry into service.
ANDY RIGBY
The Leyland National — the vehicle that defined the 1970s — holds a unique place in British bus history.
A joint venture by Leyland and the stateowned National Bus Company, it was a technically advanced, highly standardised single-decker that was mass-produced using car manufacturing techniques in a new factory dedicated to its construction.
