Stalybridge, Hyde, Mossley and Dukinfield
1949
Daimler CVD6
East Lancs H30/26R

The name of this operator is shortened to S.H.M.D. thankfully, its full name was as follows “Stalybridge, Hyde, Mossley and Dukinfield Joint Transport and Electricity Board”. Stalybridge, Hyde, Mossley and Dukinfield are 4 towns to the east of Manchester. This Daimler had an East Lancs body which was a rare thing as to say they preferred Northern Counties would be an understatement.
S.H.M.D. got together with Atkinson and Northern Counties and in 1955 the only Atkinson double-decker ever built went into service but nothing ever became of the venture and in 1969 it passed over to SELNEC but was never operated. Did it get scrapped or was it preserved? If you know, let me know, please leave a comment.

There is a very good shot of the only Atkinson double-decker ever built here it is no1 in the list.

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The Atkinson ‘decker No. 70 (UMA 370) was restored at Stalybridge on withdrawal and presented to the Greater Manchester Museum of Transport, where it still lives. It does come out from time to time and still goes well.

SHMD had ten of those East Lancs bodies, and ten Brush bodies just after the war; it was just a case of "grab what you can" in the post-war shortage of new buses. The East Lancs bodies must have been good as they lived a full life; the Brush were rubbish and were replaced by NCME ones after six years.

David A Jones

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Number 70 was not the only Atkinson double-decker built there were two one which was sent to India.

Peter Barber

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SHMD were on of the last operators to use centre entrance deckers buying them as late as the nineteen fifties. As well as the solitary Atkinson one other SHMD bus with centre entrance is still in existence being a Daimler CVG6 with Northern Counties body that lives at the Keighley bus museum. They also have a SHMD Atkinson Alpha centre entrance saloon under restoration.

Chris Hough