East Surrey
East Surrey tried out a small 20-seater 14hp Bean in July 1929, and was sufficiently pleased with it to buy it.
Quite what they used it for I do not know, but it survived into London Transport days.
Other Beans came their way by takeover. Mr C.H.Hever, an ex East Surrey employee, had started a bus service along the Darenth Valley between Eynsford and Dartford, a route that East Surrey had tried but relinquished.
East Surrey promptly retaliated with a small Guy and reduced fares. But the Darenth Bus Service prospered, and Mr Hever was able to build up the service, now including Farningham and Sutton-at-Hone (ignored by East Surrey). Four forward-entrance 14hp Beans with Willowbrook 20-seater bodies were acquired. (I don't know what colour they were). Mr Hever bought a coach-bodied Bean too, and realised that he could do a profitable deal with East Surrey. So he did, receiving a cash payment on the spot for handing over the four bus Beans (numbered 21-24)
plus the route and goodwill. He continued successfully operating coaches. East Surrey continued using the Beans until September 1931. One use they found for them was further south on the 401, as competition on the Sevenoaks-Otford-Twitton - Shoreham Village 401E.
That route had seen competition by Mr Berry and Mr Durrant, who used a little 14-seat Chevrolet on it
during daytimes (cinema trips to Tonbridge in the evenings) from November 1929. The Chevrolet was replaced in May 1930 by a 20-seater Bean, soon supplemented by another 14-seater Bean. They traded as Sevenoaks Motor Services. East Surrey competed fiercely, with gross over-provision of buses, both along the main road to Shoreham Station (401), and via the narrow lane through Twitton (401E). For these the little Beans from the Darenth concern came in very useful. In November the little company threw in the towel, selling their interest, with the two Beans, to East Surrey. The two Beans were sold on to Autocar two months later. The smaller one came back with the formation of the London Transport Country Area.
Royal Highlander was one of the concerns that took advantage of the growth of the Underground northwards,
and the consequent sparks effect on suburban housing growth. One of its new routes was the 211 (Ealing Broadway - Drayton Bridge - Greenford (Hare & Hounds)), which suffered from projecting trees in Gordon Road. To cope with this problem three especially narrow (6ft 6in) Birch-bodied Bean 14-seaters were bought during 1931. There were disputes between Mrs Sayers and Mr Hewitt over control and finances of the company. Route 225 (Greenford (Rutland Road) - Haven Green) was added from May 1932. Maintenance seems to have been a problem, as when LGOC took over the company in September 1932 it had to suspend operation of the 225 while the buses were remedied. They survived into London Transport Central Area stock, becoming BN1-3. One (BN2) went at the end of 1934, but the other two kept going until disposal in July 1936.
Henry Turner of Wandsworth had two Beans, one 25cwt and one 30cwt, with rear entrance bodywork by Birch Brothers, seating 12 and 14 respectively. They were painted green, and used on route 207 (Barnes Railway Hotel - Richmond Golf Course). Turner ran into financial problems in 1930, and the buses were repossessed by Birch. The larger bus was bought by Mr Nutt for an intended service in Colindale, which did not go forward, presumably because of the impending impact of the LPTB. It became a caravan in 1941, until 1966. It was bought for preservation by the Bredgar& Wormshill Railway in Kent. It was restored to its original bus condition in 1988-91, and displayed at the Commercial Vehicle Museum in Leyland, then at Bredgar. It was sold in 2010, but kept securely and in running condition by the Hilltop Bean Collection. It was auctioned by Bonhams in 2014.
Ian's Bus Stop
Bean text.
histories