A series of images sent in by Stephen Gow piqued our curiosity, especially the sight of a Leyland National fitted with a flip-dot destination screen. The bus in question began life
as a service bus with Isle of Man Transport, before being converted to a computer bus for the use of the island’s schools in the 1990s, a role in which it lasted for many years.
The bus, which was converted in a joint sponsorship project involving the Isle of Man Government Department of Education and Manx Telecom was unveiled in 1998 and fitted with what was then the latest in technology. Around a decade later, the bus was refurbished and equipped with a suite of the latest Apple iMac computers and educational software.
The vehicle was new to the Isle of Man in 1977 as the island operator’s number 30, registered MAN 30N, and served in its original role for 23 years until December 1997 before being selected to form the basis of a planned state-of-the-art facility to take computer education in the Isle of Man into the 21st century. It’s role as a mobile classroom saw it visit all of the island’s 35 primary schools on a termly basis as well as supporting secondary school projects like field trips to remote locations.
The bus was believed to be the first of its kind in the British Isles and promised to deliver exciting sessions to pupils in a carefully planned partnership with their teachers, supported by the latest technology from Manx Telecom to allow access to the internet, e-mail and videoconferencing.
The bus carried a number of special liveries during its life as the Computerbus, and was photographed at the island’s Jurby Transport Museum in April this year by Stephen, demonstrating its final use. Stephen reports that the unusual flip-dot destination screens were fitted in 2007.
Stephen also included some shots of the island’s modern fleet, in the silver livery which Bus Vannin now uses, including PMN-268-D, a 2020 Mercedes-Benz-Citaro approaching Castletown from the west on 12 April, 2014 Volvo B9TL LMN-179-N on Douglas Promenade on 17 April, with the Sefton Hotel and the Gaiety Theatre, both notable Victorian buildings, in the background, and finally a scenic image of 2012 Mercedes-Benz Citaro LMN-228-H in Castletown on 16 April, taken from the top of Castle Rushen, alongside the Silver Burn and with part of Castletown Harbour in the foreground.
