Trolleybus Memories: Brighton
Brighton Corporation ran a fleet of open-top tramcars from 1901 to 1939 when, in one fell swoop, the whole system was replaced by 44 trolleybuses and 21 motor buses, all of AEC/Weymann manufacture. In the same year agreement was reached with the Brighton Hove & District Omnibus Co Ltd., formerly Thomas Tilling, whereby mileage and receipts in the Brighton and Hove area were pooled on a percentage basis. The agreement also empowered Brighton Hove & District to operate trolleybuses, although the overhead and electrical equipment was provided and maintained by the Corporation. Thus, BH&D also bought eight similar trolleybuses that were delivered in 1939 but due to the outbreak of war were stored until the cessation of hostilities.
During the late 1940s and early 1950s the system was extended to serve new housing estates but by 1956 the writing was on the wall and March 1959 saw the first stage of the trolleybus abandonment under which all the Company's services were replaced by motor buses and the Corporation was left with just the Hollingbury and Preston Drove services. These soldiered on until June 1961 when the last trolleybus ran into Lewes Road depot.
In this second title in the 'Trolleybus Memories' series authors Glyn Kraemer-Johnson and John Bishop, both of whom knew the Brighton system intimately, pay tribute to it in words and pictures using photographs from their own collections and those of other well-known photographers. The authors provide a fascinating account of the development and operation of the Brighton system, drawing on their own memories and those of others who knew and worked on the trolleybuses.
Including some 175 colour and mono photographs the book provides a nostalgic look back at a bygone and much-loved form of transport in the town and will appeal to local historians, transport enthusiasts and all those with an interest in Brighton over the past 70 years.
Softback, 21x28cm, 112 pages, black & white and colour photographs
Condition: Good/Very Good
ISBN: 9780711031999
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Updated: 31 July 2026