Sunday 12 May 2024 – Mid Norfolk Railway Bus and Coach Day, East Dereham

The seating on board preserved Eastern Coachworks bodied Bristol RELH LDV 467F which was new in March 1968 to the Southern National Omnibus Company with fleet number 2375.

I had a return trip on this coach from East Dereham railway station to County School railway station about 6.5 miles journey. It was a great ride offering the sights and sounds of travel on a 56 year old coach.

One feature which has thankfully become redundant on coaches nowadays are the ash trays mounted in the rear of each seat. Part of an example is just about visible on the bottom edge of the photograph. Obnoxious things they were! Not only did copious amounts of dust and ash float around during the emptying process but they were also used by passengers to dispose of the remains of the soft fruit conveyed by them on their journeys. A ‘tee key’ or ‘budget key’ was a useful device to rake out the fag ends and debris from the ash trays when cleaning a coach.