Leyland Atlantean: books - history, models and technology

The Leyland Atlantean

The Leyland Atlantean revolutionised the layout of double-deck buses in Britain with its rear-mounted engine, setting a standard that has dominated designs for the past 60 years. Appearing in the late 1950s, when the bus market was dominated by the rear-entrance/front-engined double-deck design that had its roots in the 1920s, the Atlantean represented as significant a change in the bus industry as diesel replacing steam on Britain's railways.

Out with the old and in with the new. However, it was not plain sailing; there were the inevitable teething problems and the design underwent considerable change before it - and the competitors it inspired such as the Daimler Fleetline and Bristol VRT - could come to dominate the market.
By the end of the 1960s, economics dictated that the traditional front-engined double-decker had had its day. In the Atlantean and its competitors, the British bus and coach industry had vehicles capable of taking on and meeting the challenges, both at home and abroad, that the contemporary world presented.
The Atlantean was probably the last British-designed and -built bus to achieve massive sales worldwide, with the list of operators both at home and abroad being legion.

In this fully illustrated book, Gavin Booth looks back at the development of the Leyland Atlantean from its origins in the 1950s and examines its importance over the past half-century.
Although the Atlantean has largely disappeared from public service, its influence remains and, through the handful that remain in service and those that survive in preservation and through the pages of this book, it is possible to pay tribute to one of the most significant bus designs of the second half of the 20th century.

The Leyland Atlantean (Nostalgia Road)

The Leyland Atlantean revolutionised the design and layout of bus design in Britain, setting a standard that has dominated double-deck designs for the last 50 years. Appearing in the late 1950s, when the bus market was dominated by the rear-entrance/front-engined double-deck design, the Atlantean's rear engine represented a significant change.
But it was not plain sailing; there were the inevitable teething problems and the design underwent considerable change before it - and the competitors it inspired such as the Daimler Fleetline and Bristol VRT - could come to dominate the market.

By the end of the 1960s, economics dictated that the traditional front-engined double-decker had had its day. The Atlantean was probably the last British designed and built bus to achieve massive sales worldwide, with the list of operators both at home and abroad being legion.
Gavin Booth looks back at the development of the Leyland Atlantean from its origins in the 1950s and examines its importance over the past half-century.

Leyland Atlanteans - The Twilight Years

From its launch in 1958, the Leyland Atlantean played a pivotal role in the British bus industry. The first double-deck bus in the UK to offer the now commonplace layout of front entrance and rear engine, the Atlantean enjoyed an uninterrupted production run of nearly thirty years, with examples put into service throughout the United Kingdom and beyond.

In this book, Howard Wilde reflects on the later years, from the end of production in the mid-1980s to the present day, featuring a colourful selection of Atlanteans in different roles. The selection pays tribute to this true workhorse of the UK bus industry: a bus that will, at some time or other, have transported many members of the UK bus-using population to work, school or play.