On a winter's night in 1967, passengers expecting a typical journey were in for a terrifying experience when a bus crashed into the parapet of the Dean Bridge.
The horror began for the sixty passengers onboard the number 17 bus when it hit a lamp post on the south end of the bridge, with the icy conditions causing the vehicle to slip across the road and smash into a van - before crashing into the bridge parapet.
The bus came to a stop before plunging into the Water of Leith 130 feet below, a situation that would’ve been difficult to survive. Thankfully, none of the passengers were injured and a replacement bus was sent out to continue the journey.
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The conductress was sent to the Western General Hospital, suffering from shock. The driver managed to break a window at the back of his cab and climb through to safety.
The van which the bus crashed into was travelling into the city centre, carrying nine construction workers to a building site in East Lothian. The van's driver, Archie McKilligan, said at the time: “If it had not hit the van, I’m sure the bus would’ve gone right over.”
Before the incident on the bridge, the bus had allegedly collided with a car on George Street and another one in the West End before making its way down Queensferry Street. In a peculiar coincidence, the vehicle was featuring an advert for Prudential life insurance at the time.
With a string of incidents happening on Edinburgh Corporation in the 60s and 70s, it’s noted that the Guy Arab IV buses (the vehicle involved in the Dean Bridge crash) may have presented some issues to drivers. Though the vehicles were liked by enthusiasts, the constant-mesh gearboxes meant that great skill was needed when changing gear.
Unfortunately, none of this fleet survived into preservation. There is a rumour amongst bus enthusiasts that one sits somewhere on a mountain in Wales, though we’ll leave that exploration for someone else.
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As for the crash, the near tragedy led to calls for speed limits along with reinforced, raised kerbs and parapets on the Dean Bridge to avoid any other close calls.
In 1975, Edinburgh Corporation Transport passed the bus service on to the Lothian Regional Council’s Department of Public Transport - renaming the operation Lothian Regional Transport (LRT).
The LRT remained in place until January 2000, when the company became what we know it as today - Lothian Buses.
