FIGURES OF EIGHT
Just as the artic dominates the roads of Britain today, the mainstay of road haulage from the 1930s to 1960s was the eight-wheeler. In the days when the country had a cohesive transport infrastructure, when ship-born cargoes predated containerisation and railway goods yards were still prolific and localised, it was the eight-wheeler which linked them and delivered right onto the high street. Even when this complex puzzle underwent its biggest shake-up under the British Road Services umbrella, the eight-wheeler was in the vanguard, enabling increasing use of drawbar trailers and leading to the inevitable move into artics.
The choice on four-axles was huge, every lorry maker in the land wanted part of this lucrative class and in those halcyon days the choice was all home-grown. Albion, Atkinson, Bristol, Dodge, ERF, Foden, Guy, Leyland, Maudsley, Seddon and Thornycroft, all built a rigid-eight. You’ll find just as many hauliers and drivers who’ll argue the merits, or otherwise of each make and model derivative, but being one of the pioneers of the breed, their weight of numbers, longevity of the type, technical innovation and pure charisma always stack up towards one make; AEC.
The London General Omnibus Company (LGOC) which had been founded in 1855 to amalgamate and regulate the horsedrawn omnibus, began producing motor omnibuses for its own use in 1909 with the X-type. In 1912, LGOC was taken over by the Underground Group of companies, and as part of the reorganisation, a separate
