1925
Milnes cars top covered
The problems of the top covered cars and the low bridges had been taxing the minds of the Department for some time, and it was in this year that it was discovered that by replacing the original 31¾ inch diameter wheels with those of 26 inches, and re-designing the top cover to one of 5 inches lower, along with a flatter roof, that the lowest bridge on the system, at Church, could safely be negotiated. A top cover to the new design was ordered from the Brush Electrical Company of Loughborough, who had designed and tendered for the original top cover in 1906. In May the new cover was fitted to car No.56, as this car was the next in line for over haul, and it was tested on all routes and proved to be successful. A scheme to convert the rest of the ‘Milnes’ cars to top covered trams was then put into operation, and by the end of the year 5 more cars had been converted, No.’s 37, 50, 52, 74 and 75. No.’s 37 and 50 had ‘Brush’ built top covers, the others being constructed at Intack Depot Bodyshop. A total of four top covers were purchased from ‘Brush’ for a total cost of £1,440, equal to £360 each, a considerable difference between that and the original top cover price! The covers were built from the same type of wood as the original 1906 design, with the new style roof being made up of tongue and grooved pine with stretched canvas covering. At the same time provisions were made for the trolley pole to be placed centrally instead of to one side, the design of this new cover was once again supervised by Mr Rossall.

For the conversion of the trucks, several purchases of 26 inch diameter wheels were made from Bolton Crucible Steel Company Limited, David Brown & Son’s (Huddersfield) Limited and John Barker & Company (Rotherham) Limited for a total cost of £336.12s. 5d. Steel tyres for the wheels were purchased from Brown Bayleys Steel Works Limited for £272.13s. 9d. A new type of life guard and life tray was also fitted to the top covered cars, manufactured by Hudson & Bowring Limited, which were subsequently fitted to all classes of cars.

One-Man-Operation
Also in May an experiment was undertaken with one-man-operation on the Audley route. This route had always shown low traffic returns compared to the other routes and it was exclusively operated by the U.E.C. single-deck cars to keep costs to a minimum. It was felt that by introducing one-man-operated cars, the running costs could be reduced even further. Car No.86 was chosen for the experiment and was converted to a ‘through passenger flow’ car by the addition of platform doors on the opposite side of the platform to the existing entrance, thereby making it ‘front-entrance-rear-exit’. The doors were of the 2-panel folding type and an air-compressor and foot operated treadle mechanism, supplied by G.D.Peters Limited, were fitted to operate them and the brakes. The design of these doors, constructed at Intack depot, matched the style of the bodywork in having arched windows. The inlay panels below the window level were painted ivory with olive green surround, and a very pleasing result was obtained. At the same time 2 x Dick, Kerr Limited DK 31A, 50h.p. motors and B.T.H. K3 controllers were fitted, which were fitted in a central position on the platform to allow passengers to get passed. Unfortunately, problems caused by the loading and unloading, and the unreliability with the intricate treadle mechanism for operating the doors, made the experiment unsuccessful, and after about 18 months the car was taken out of normal service and confined to ‘Football Special’ duties and use as an extra car in emergencies or as a ‘Sunday’ car when traffic was light.

When track was being re-laid the granite setts of the highway were sealed with tar by either hiring a tar boiler from the Highways Department, or by contracting out the work, both options costly to the Tramways department. In an effort to cut costs in this area, the Tramways Department purchased their own tar boiler for £49, which substantially reduced the costs of the Permanent Way jobs.

A new scheme was prepared, and accepted, by the Tramways Committee in June for a “..new deal..” on fare stages. No changes were to be made to the Accrington or Audley routes, but on the Wilpshire section the 1½d. stage from Salford to St. James’s Road was to be extended to the Cemetery, and the Brookhouse to Roe Lee stage was extended to Brownhill. St. James’s Road to Wilpshire terminus became a new 1½d. stage and the whole route, from Salford to Wilpshire terminus was reduced from 2½d. to 2d. The only reduction on the Preston Road route was that the fare from the Boulevard to Billinge End was reduced from 2d. to 1½d. The 1½d. stage on the Cherry Tree route from Freckleton Street (King’s Head) to the Feniscliffe loop was extended to the terminus. On the Darwen section, the stage from the Infirmary to Branch Road was extended as far as the Borough Boundary with no change to the 1½d. fare. The 2d. stage from the Boulevard to Branch Road was also extended to the Borough Boundary.
The ill-starred ‘toastrack’ tram, No.88, was given yet another new lease of life, when it was converted to a haulage car. At the same time works car No.2 was taken out of service. In June the programme of erecting shelters was continued and one was placed at the Griffin Inn, Preston Old Road, on the Cherry Tree route. The building of this shelter was as a direct result of a petition by shop-keepers in the locality of the Griffin Inn complaining of intending passengers loitering in shop door ways whilst waiting for their trams. A portion of track, just outside the Borough Boundary, on the Accrington route, equivalent to 1,830 yards of single track was renewed, as were a pair of points on the Darwen section, two pairs on the Cherry Tree section and the 90 foot curve at Audley Range Church.

Because of the fitting of top covers to Blackburn’s cars, Darwen Corporation felt that they to should provide the same level of comfort for the joint service, so in late 1925 2 totally enclosed, low-height, double-deck bogie cars were purchased from the ‘Brush Electrical Engineering Company’ for exclusive running on the through route. These cars were No.’s 16 & 17. To supplement these cars, Darwen converted five of their original bogie cars to covered top during the next four years.

In December a tablet in remembrance of the Tramway employees who lost their lives in the Great War was unveiled at the Tramway Men's Institute. The tablet is of beaten metal mounted on oak, and bears the names of twenty-nine men who made the great sacrifice. Mr Gertson, who lost his son soon after being awarded the DCM unveiled the memorial. Relatives of the men whose names are inscribed on the tablet were present at the ceremony as were Councillor T Sharples and Mr J A Cowell.

1926
In March the Committee considered the question of laying double tracks at Bastwell and under Skew Bridge on the Wilpshire section, which at this time, were interlaced. The Skew Bridge portion was re-laid thus, but the project to alter the lines at Bastwell were left untouched. Other track re-laying during the year included:

Church section.….….between White Ash and New Barn
Ainsworth Street...….40 yards
Victoria Street.......…45 yards
Feniscliffe Bridge…...New points laid

In addition to this the Permanent Way Department also renewed some 3½ miles of trolley wire due to various road widening schemes in the town where provision for extra poles had been found necessary. A request from Church Urban District Council was received in May with regards to the erection of a Tramway Shelter at the Church terminus. This request was granted and the shelter was subsequently built.

Blackburn Corporation had run a successful Crown Green Bowling team for some years and it was decided to build a bowling green on land adjacent to the Intack depot, and a local firm of W.Jenkins was contracted, at a cost of £550, to lay the green and erect a pavilion at the East end of the land. At the same time a line was laid from the depot line to in front of the pavilion.

Four more of the ‘Milnes’ cars were top covered, No.’s 38, 41, 44 (‘Brush’ make), and 69. Cars No.’s 45 and 61 had their original top covers altered to the new design, though No.61 retained its drop-framed windows. In addition a further 14 cars were over hauled, painted and varnished.

In August, for the first time in many months, the number of passengers carried decreased in comparison to the same month the previous year:

The Simmons Street depot was leased to Messrs Thompson Bros. (Blackburn) Limited and the lease was to be renewed each year. From now on all Permanent way materials were stored at Intack depot, in the old steam tram depot.

The General Strike
The big event of 1926 was the General Strike, and when this began on May 14th, all Tramway Employees joined in. With the assistance of Inspectors as drivers and parcel boys and clerks as conductors, a partial service was maintained during the busy periods of the day, i.e. mornings and evenings. Over the next few days, as the strike began to crumble, drivers and conductors began to drift back to work and by the following Wednesday 50 employees had returned and a 10 minute service was resumed at ‘meal-times’. No trouble was reported to have occurred during this difficult time, and the strike was over by May 12th, and from then on a normal service operated.

A new Tramway Shelter and Waiting Room was built at Wilpshire terminus, and incorporated a ‘Gentlemen’s’ convenience and a ‘Ladies’ on a lower level as well as a parcel office. The building cost the sum of £1,200. (Although this building was not used after tramway abandonment, the waiting room was used as a polling station for local and General elections and remained intact up until the mid-1980’s when it was pulled down. The only remaining feature is the steps that led to the lower level.)

1927
During the Winter of 1926/27 there had been a scarcity of passengers and as a result, to tempt more passengers, the fares on the Wilpshire, Darwen and Cherry Tree routes were reduced to a 3d. return as of February 1926. In March this was further reduced when a 1½d. return was introduced on all routes within the Borough, and the Town Clerk was instructed to meet with Darwen Council Officials to discuss reductions on that section between the Borough Boundary and Darwen.

An electric tram standard opposite St Siles's Church, Preston New Road, Blackburn, became electrified shortly after noon yesterday, but owing to the alertness of PC Walton, who was on duty nearby, no one was affected by it. The constable heard a dog that was passing give a loud howl, and on investigating found the standard to be charged with electricity.

Accrington Observer 18th Jan 1927

A total of 13 cars were over hauled and 4 more ‘Milnes’ cars, No.’s 57, 58, 63 and 64, received top covers. In addition car No.49, one of the original top covered cars, received a new top cover. Four high-speed motors were obtained from the ‘British Thompson Houston Company Limited’ for £655, and as an experiment were fitted to car No.57. These motors were type 265D and were rated at 35h.p. each and enabled the car to attain speeds hitherto unknown in Blackburn. Because of the faster speeds capable of by this car it was used almost exclusively on the long-haul ‘country’ route to Church.

Although traffic returns increased slightly during the early part of the year, they were still down on the previous year, and only from June onwards did the trend begin to go upwards.

In July a shelter was erected at Brownhill, where an unusual feature was that the trams went through the middle of the roundabout at the junction of Brownhill Drive and Whalley New Road. Brownhill Drive (the Blackburn ring-road) was dual carriage-way with a central grass verge, this had originally been designed in 1924 for future use as a reserved-track section, and the shelter was built at the end of this verge, some 15 yards from where the trams actually stopped in the middle of the roundabout.

Wilpshire terminus altered
Following the building of the waiting room at Wilpshire terminus it was decided to improve the track layout at this destination. The work involved the removal of the centre of the road layout and the laying of 164 yards of single track, along with a new point, to form a ‘gutter running’ stub termini, the result being to everyone’s satisfaction. Other track work undertaken during this year consisted of:

Cherry Tree section.....1,520 yards of single track between the Griffin Inn and Byrom Street.
Town Centre................New crossing in Railway road, new points and crossings at various places on the Boulevard, and new ‘mastic asphalt laid in Darwen Street.

Fatal accident in Whalley New Road
A serious accident occurred in November when on the 18th, a tramcar, driven by Thomas Rideout, which was travelling from Wilpshire, was in collision with a horse and cart. The tram had just left the interlaced section near to St. James’s Road, where the double track went close to the curb opposite Larch Street. The tram, travelling at between 4 and 5 miles per hour, according to the driver, caught the cart with the back end of the tram and pushed it over into the walls of 160, Whalley New Road, which collapsed. The horse-cart driver, Mr Robert Woller, was thrown from the cart and crushed to death by the falling stone gateposts. A Mr John Turner, who was on the cart, was thrown clear from the cart, and was unhurt. He later stated that he thought the tramcar was travelling at between 10 and 12 miles per hour and should have waited for the cart to clear the narrow part of the roadway before over-taking. As a result of this accident the interlaced track was extended to a point opposite No.150, Whalley New Road.

Work commenced on re-aligning the over head wires, and a programme of central positioning of trolley poles, as per the 1921 report, was started with ‘Siemens’ car No.35 in December.

The minimum fare of 1d. was discontinued in December in favour of a 1½d. minimum, except in the case of workmen and children.

Also in December it was decided to have bulkheads fitted to the upper deck of the next car in line for top covering.

Early morning, or ‘workmen’s ‘ cars, were re-introduced on the Audley route as of December 1st.

1928
At a Committee meeting in early January 1928, it was decided that the Tramway Shelter situated at the Griffin Inn on the Preston Old Road was “...an eye-sore and a nuisance...” and it’s removal was ordered, despite it only being 3 years old.

Emma Ogden (55) wife of Mr Thomas Ogden, confectioner, 63 Audley Lane, died with tragic suddenness on Monday afternoon. She was proceeding home by tramcar after attending a picture hall when she suddenly collapsed and fell to the floor of the car. On being picked up it was found that she was dead. The body was carried home. Mrs Ogden had recently had difficulty in breathing and had complained of pains about her heart. The facts were reported to the Coroner, but an inquest was not considered necessary.

Blackburn Times 28th Jan 1928

Another 15 cars were over hauled during the year and 3 further ‘Milnes’ cars, No.’s 39, 48 and 60 had top covers fitted. Car No.48 differed from the normal design, as per the Committee’s decision to fit bulkheads to the upper-deck, as an experiment, it was actually fitted with a glass screen partition around the stairwell and a door was fitted at the top of the stairs, to the same design as those fitted to London County Council trams. To accommodate the fitting of this screen the two upper deck windows forward of the stairs were designed of unequal width. In addition to the re-builds, car No.62 had it’s original top deck damaged beyond economical repair during re-building, and a new top deck was fitted, making this car, along with No.49, the only cars to receive 2 top deck covers! This new top cover also incorporated the glass screen partitions to the same design as No.48. Although the result of these screens was pleasing, from an aesthetic point of view, in practice they hampered passenger flow, and it was decided that no more cars should be thus fitted, however both cars retained their screens throughout their lives.

The Highways Committee granted permission for the erection of a tram shelter on a piece of land they owned near to the Infirmary Bridge on the Darwen route, and this was duly built.

The ‘Vulcan’ motor car, used by the Tramways Manager, was sold and a new ‘Fiat’ saloon car was purchased for £34.12s. 0d. The irony being that Mr Cowell could not actually drive, and was chauffeured around.

Four miles of trolley wire were renewed and at Intack depot galleries were installed to facilitate the cleaning and other attentions to the trams. These being erected between No.’s 2 and 3 roads.

Death on a tramcar
On the night of Saturday June 23rd Mr Thomas Livesey aged 69 of Wilpshire collapsed and died in a tramcar in Whalley New Road. The deceased had helped to found Blackburn Olympic Football Club, early rivals to the Rovers, who gained renown by being the first club to bring the F.A.Cup to the provinces, when in 1883 they defeated Old Etonians 2-1 at the Kennington Oval.

During 1928 the following track work was carried out by the department:
Ainsworth Street.................146 yards of single track
Salford & Church Street.......304 yards of single track
King Street & Mincing Lane..566 yards of single track
Feniscliffe Brow...................282 yards of single track
Brownhill.............................240 yards of single track

In addition new point s and crossings were installed at St. James’ road and St. Alban’s and new points installed at Pringle Street.

As a result of a request from the High School for Girls on Preston New Road, the Committee gave permission for the tramcars to pick-up and set-down school children on wet days outside the school.

In November a 2d. return stage was introduced on all 1½d. stages. Up to this time any expenditure for equipment and sundry items had always been under the control of the Tramways Manager, but in an attempt to keep a check on expenses the Committee introduced a scheme whereby all expenses over £100 had to be authorised by the Committee. This turned out to be somewhat of a pointless procedure, as there appears to be hardly any records of instances where the Committee turned any claim down.

1929
As stated earlier, advertisements on the outside of the tramcars was abolished in 1915, but in February 1929 the question of allowing small adverts to be placed in the lower saloon windows of the cars was considered and agreed, providing that no more than 2 adverts per side were displayed, and that they were to be no larger than 18inch x 9inch.

Accrington Corporation had begun omnibus operations in 1927, and it was in this year that Blackburn received a deputation from Accrington with a view to that authority running a through bus service between the two towns. The application was agreed to, after much deliberation, and a 20-minute service was inaugurated from March 18th. Whilst the service was operated solely by Accrington Corporation, the revenue was shared equally. The fares were 6d. single and 10d. return. No passengers could be picked up beyond the respective Borough boundaries. To compete with this new service a new intermediate 1d. stage was introduced on the trams between the Spread eagle and the Commercial Hotel, Church. The 1d. fare, in operation on some routes, was abolished in favour of scales previously in operation, but by late Summer the 1d. fare was re-introduced.

New line at Ewood
During football match days the area around Ewood Park was becoming very congested, particularly in view of the increasing number of private motor cars which parked in the area. The number of trams used for ‘Football Specials’, which parked along Kidder Street and on the Bolton Road third line loop, plus normal service cars, mad the points-man, on duty at the Kidder Street-Bolton Road junction, fear for his life at times. His job being to operate the points at this junction by means of a points-bar to enable cars to traverse into Kidder Street, and this involved him standing in the middle of the road for several hours, changing the points as require. In June 1929 an ‘automatic-point’, as it was described, was installed. the equipment fort his, supplied by the ‘Equipment and Engineering Company’, was an ingenious device, and allowed the changing of the point from a safe distance. The equipment was easy to operate and was fastened to the traction pole adjacent to the point. Operation was by means of a lad, who stood on a platform next to the pole, pulling a lever according to which way the tram was supposed to go, the lever then activated a water-tight point control solenoid to change point blade direction and that of the frog in the over head wire. Coloured glass lamps were fitted to the box to notify the motorman in the oncoming tram which way the points were set. The system proved to be a success, and saved much time, though the main advantage being the reduction of the chance of mishap to the pointsman.

At Intack depot a one-ton electric travelling crane with a 3h.p. motor, along with a runway, was erected. Eleven cars were over hauled during the year and ‘Milnes’ cars No.’s 42, 67, 70 and 71 received top covers. This gave a total of 25 all enclosed, all ‘all-weather’ cars, as the Committee described them.

Double track from Hollin Bank Bridge to the Infirmary, on the Darwen route, and single track from Commercial Street to All Saints School totalling 1,775 yards of single track, including points and crossings were laid.

The Royal Lancashire agricultural Show was held near to Old Mother Redcap in the Spring and the Corporation laid on special cars for the duration, with fares of 3d. from Blackburn to Old Mother Redcap, or from the Commercial Hotel, Church to Old Mother Redcap.

Introduction of Omnibuses
The decision was taken in July to introduce omnibuses by the Corporation to supplement tramway operations, and the Blackburn Corporation Act (1929) was passed. Authorisation had originally been granted in 1908, but this was allowed to elapse. At the same time the Borough Engineer was requested to prepare plans and an estimate for the erection of a building to adjoin the tram depot to accommodate the omnibus fleet.

The plans for the new depot were put before the Committee in August and were approved:

Cost of garage
To accommodate 40 omnibuses including heating and lighting equipment, fitting Shop, Body Shop, Paint shop and offices....£15,750
Cost of machinery and tools for garage...................................£2,000

It was also decided that at the same time as the new depot was being constructed that the tram depot should be re-glazed at a cost of £873.00

By September the automatic point at Ewood had proved so successful that a second automatic point was installed at the loop on Bolton Road.

The first buses had been ordered in August from Leyland Motors Limited and on November 1st the six routes commenced operations:

Boulevard to Wensley Fold
Boulevard to Little Harwood
Circular via Arterial Road
Boulevard to London Road
Boulevard to Whitebirk
Boulevard to Accrington (Limited Stop)

The vehicles purchased were 6 single-deck,30-seat Leyland Tigers TS1’s No.’s 1-6, costing £1,402.10s. 0d. each and 6 double-deck, 48-seat Leyland Titan TD’s No.’s 7-12 costing £1,650. 0s. 0d. each. At first the bus fleet was house in the Permanent Way Depot (the old steam tram depot).

On the recommendation of Mr R. Stuart-Pilcher, Manager of Manchester Tramways, during the latter part of the year, Mr Cowell put forward a suggestion to the Committee, which was accepted, that to improve services the speeds at which the trams could travel should be increased. An application to the Ministry of Transport was made and authorised:

From 12 m.p.h. to a suggested 20 m.p.h.:
a) In Whalley New Road
1. Between Agate Street and Ruby Terrace and
2. From Ruby Terrace to the terminus at the Borough Boundary on the outward journey
b) In Preston Old Road between Spring Lane and Green Lane
c) In Craven’s Brow, from Lower Darwen, Branch Road to the Darwen Borough Boundary on the outward journey
d) In Queen’s Park Road on the upward journey
From 10 m.p.h. to a suggested 16 m.p.h:
a) In Lower Audley Street
b) In Audley Range
From 7 m.p.h. to a suggested 16 m.p.h:
Down the long gradient in Preston New Road
From 6 m.p.h. to a suggested 12 m.p.h:
a) In Darwen Street between Church Street and Railway Bridge
b) In Penny Street between Larkhill and intersection of Regent Street
c) In Regent Street, Ainsworth Street and Holme Street
d) In Eanam, Higher Eanam, Copy Nook and Bottomgate, between Cicely Lane and Newton Street
e) In Blackburn Road, Church, between Blythe’s sidings and Commercial Hotel
Darwen Corporation, who had begun omnibus operations in 1926, put forward the idea of also operating a through service from Darwen town centre to Blackburn Boulevard but, as the introduction of buses on the Accrington route had led to a decrease in revenue, the Committee would not agree to Darwen’s plans.

Two cars collide
On Monday November 18th, there was a collision between two ‘Milnes’ cars on the Church section near to Old Mother Redcap. [see image] The Blackburn Times reported that there was “...an almost impenetrable fog which prevented drivers from seeing more than a few yards or so ahead...”The trams were travelling in opposite directions and the Church bound tram had just entered the single track section when, at a very low speed, met the Blackburn bound car head on. Both cars were badly damaged at the front ends, the Times stating that “...one had it’s front end reduced to splinters...”, despite the controllers of both cars being pushed towards the bulkheads, neither driver was hurt, though a student on the top deck of the Blackburn bound tram suffered a fracture to his left leg. One car was towed back the short distance to Intack depot by another car, whilst the other managed to limp back under it’s own power. The track work was damaged and through traffic was held up for over an hour until the Permanent Way gang had made thenecessary repairs.

Mrs Norah Pickthall (27), weaver, of 47, Waterbarn Street Burnley, was travelling in a Blackburn Corporation tramcar along Bolton Road last night, when she was taken ill. The ambulance was called, but before its arrival she gave birth to a baby girl. She was taken to the Royal Infirmary..

Northern Daily Telegraph 2nd July 1930

1930
Upholstered seating for the Tramcars
Three more ‘Milnes’ cars were top covered, No.’s 40, 46 and 72 and as an experiment a new type of seating was to be tried in the lower-saloons of the ‘Milnes’ cars, consisting of the removing of the wooden longitudinal seating and replacing with 2 + 1 upholstered, transverse seating, which was of dark green leather. The fitting of these seats reduced the seating capacity in the lower saloon to 27. Car No.45 was the first to have this alteration carried out in May, followed by No.57, the high-speed motored car, in October. The seats were made by two separate firms, those fitted to No.45 being made by Pierce Limited, and those fitted in No.57 were manufactured by Siddall Hilton Limited of Sowerby. This improvement was most popular, providing passengers with a hitherto unknown comfort. These two trams then ran exclusively on the Church and Accrington route in an attempt to compete with the buses.

The Tramway Committee authorised the finances which permitted the upholstering of all other cars of the ‘Milnes’ class already fitted with top covers and provision for all cars receiving top covers to be also fitted with these new seats.

A report this year into the consumption of electricity, deducting units for haulage and grinding out the track, came to 2.11 units per car mile. This can be compared to petrol costs for the buses, which was 1s. 4½d. per gallon in 1929, though this had been reduced to 9d. by 1930. Petrol consumption was 5 m.p.g. on average.

Three points and three miles of trolley wire were renewed and repaired as necessary, with the relaying of the following Permanent Way:

All this work was the equivalent to 1,675 yards of single track and also included a new crossing at Larch Street. The alterations to the Town Centre section involved the re-designing of the track work along Railway Road (see map page ). The result was that Church section cars now ran down the entire length of Railway Road on the ‘wrong’ side of the road, this length of track also being the inward line for cars returning from the Preston Road route. To help with this practise, automatic lights were installed at each end of Railway Road, which were activated by a tram entering the line, thus preventing another from the opposite direction.

Proposal to operate trolley-buses
In November and December 1930, the Corporation sought powers, by means of a Parliamentary notice and a public notice, to operate trolley buses. All tramway routes would be abandoned and replaced by trolley buses, certain bus routes would also be taken over by trolley buses. The notice empowered the Corporation to work and maintain trolley buses along streets in the Borough and in the Urban districts of Oswaldtwistle and Church, and to provide the necessary turning points and connecting routes, as well as standards, wires, brackets and other related apparatus.

Also in the notice, permission was sought to prohibit or restrict the running of omnibuses in competition with any of the Corporation’s tram, trolley bus or omnibus services.

No further information on this subject has come to light. Whether parliamentary powers were not granted or that the Corporation went off the idea is not known. Certainly what is known is that trolley buses were never operated in Blackburn and all future investment into public transport was directed towards the trams and the acquisition and the building up of the bus fleet.

Around this time one-man-operated car No.86 was converted back to the normal layout, though the 50h.p. motors and the ‘new’ controllers were kept in the tram.

Clocks erected at terminus
To help with time keeping, clocks were erected at each outer terminus and on the Boulevard, each clock being attached to a convenient traction pole closest to the terminal point. Two of these clocks survived until 1996, the one located at Intack, though with a face missing and the one at Wilpshire terminus, though it was moved 75 yards further down the road when the bus terminus was installed at that point. Needless to say that neither of the clocks had worked for some years.

Another accident, resulting in a fatality, occurred on September 7th. A Conductor, Mr George Smith was killed at Darwen. The tram he was conducting on had just left the Whitehall terminus and had barely gone 100 yards, at a point where there was a coach station on both sides of the road, for East Lancs Motors Limited and K.C.R. Services. There were vehicles in both stations and it is believed Mr Smith leaned out to call to someone at the East Lancs Motors stop when his head became trapped between the framework of the tram and of a K.C.R. coach and he was killed instantly.

Emergency jacking equipment
In the event of a minor derailment the trams could normally be lifted back onto the tracks with a jack. To save time an emergency jack and set of tools were kept at various addresses with the agreement of the residents, who were paid an acknowledgement of 5s. 0d. for this service (where necessary). These were located at:

Church section:
Salford Office
Intack Depot
Porters Farm, spread eagle

Cherry Tree section:
Mr Thomas Rodden, Confectioner, Witton Stocks
Mr Edmundson, Newsagent, Whalley Banks

Wilpshire section:
Cemetery Lodge Gates
Parcels Office, Wilpshire

Audley section:
Mr Ball, Greengrocer, 69, Audley Range

Preston Road section:
Messrs Robinson’s, Cab proprietors (in office)
Fox & Grapes

In late September, driver Mr H. Callon was awarded £2. 2s. 0d. in recognition of his bravery in stopping a runaway horse in Salford.

Tramway returns began to show a sharp decrease by the end of the year and this was attributed to the depressed state of the cotton trade, being one of Blackburn’s main industries, for which the town relied on heavily, and also from the competition from buses, especially on the Accrington route. Despite this a joint bus service to Darwen Whitehall began operations on November 13th, though this was not a through service, vehicles from each Corporation ‘reversing’ at the Borough Boundary.

Electricity prices had been reduced as of December 1st, 1929, with the result that the cost of power per car mile for 1930 was 2.71d. as compared to 3.65d. for 1929/30 and 4.07d. for 1928/29.

A Blackburn Corporation tramcar caught fire in Jubilee Street in the centre of the town on Saturday night, the over-heating of a resistance box under the driver's platform resulting in some woodwork being set alight. The driver and other tramway employees attacked the outbreak with sand and a chemical extinguisher, but the fire was not put out until the arrival on the scene of two members of the fire brigade, who brought more chemical extinguishers in a car. A few passengers who were in the car left quickly when the trouble developed.

Blackburn Times 17th January 1931

1931
Accrington route terminus altered
In order to help the problems of congestion at Salford Bridge, caused by the ever-increasing road traffic, the terminus for the Accrington, Church and Intack routes was altered to a point some 50 yards up the road. This involved the laying of a second track from the water trough at the bottom of Eanam to Ye Olde White Bull Hotel to form a siding. The line over High Street was now not used for normal service cars. This alteration also put an end to the cars travelling down the ‘wrong’ side of the road, as they had done for some 50 yards of Salford Bridge and latterly, along Railway Road. Although this practice must have caused great alarm to visiting motorists, no serious accidents appear to have happened. The cost of laying this new siding was £1,400. The automatic light system erected on Railway Road the year previous was taken down and fitted on traction poles at each end of a section along Eanam from the Salvation Army building to the junction of High Street and Eanam, and was operated by a switch in the frog at this junction, a tram entering the section turned the lights at both ends to red, once the car had vacated the section the light returned to green.

The over head wire along Church Street was slightly re-aligned during over haul work which resulted in a bracket being fixed to the Conservative Club building, for which an acknowledgement of 2s. 6d. per annum was to be paid.

Year end figures:
In March the year end figures of expenses and income were issued and included some interesting details:

In the latter part of the year Accrington Corporation, who were in the process of closing down their tramway system, ceased running their part of the through service, but Blackburn continued by operating the service exclusively. In anticipation of the route being cut back to Church, once Accrington had closed completely, decisions were made to try and improve the services offered to compete with the buses which included fitting more of the trams with upholstered seating. Tenders were sought and that of Siddall Hilton, of £306. 5s. 0d. for 5 sets, was accepted with one of the sets being fitted to car No.39 in December.

Although no cars had been top covered this year, 11 were over hauled, painted and varnished. The Permanent way Department renewed 3½ miles of over head wire and relayed track at the following places:

Old Bull to beyond Jubilee Street including
special points and crossings Length of Jubilee Street .....single track
Bridge Street curve and White Bull curve

To keep the cost of track renewals down some second-hand materials were purchased in December and included:

12 crossings.........................£57. 0s 0d.
10 points............................£165. 0s. 0d.
50 tons of rail......................£193.15s. 0d.

By the end of the year passengers were down to 1,199,925 for the month, with receipts of £7,000.

During the year the Corporation had purchased 12 new buses which enabled them to take over the local routes of the Ribble Motor Company and the complete acquisition of the routes and vehicles of the Blackburn Bus Company (B.B.C.). The buses purchased by the Corporation during the year were all supplied by Leyland Motors Limited and consisted of No.’s 13-18 TD1 double-decks, No.’s 19-22 TS3 single-decks and No.’s 33 & 34 TD1 double-decks. In addition the vehicles acquired by the take over of B.B.C. Limited were 8 Leyland ‘G’ type single-decks, numbered 23-30 in the Corporation fleet and 2 Leyland Lion single-decks numbered 31 & 32.

1932
Trade in the area continued to be depressed and again receipts showed a decrease. With finances tighter, a question mark fell over the programme of top covering the remaining open top cars. However, Mr Cowell argued the point that the only way to regain lost revenue was to have a continual process of improvements to both trams and services and to this end the Committee decided that the financing of 4 more top covers would be undertaken then the programme would end, with the cost being spread out over a 4 year period. Cars No.’s 43 and 73 received top covers during this time and new seats were fitted to cars 48, 60 and 63. In August a new Leyland ‘Cub’ 2-ton tipper wagon, Reg. No. BV 1763, was bought to supplement the aging ‘Vulcan’ tipper wagon, which was beginning to show signs of wear and tear, this new vehicle costing £510.

New high-speed motors
In February Mr Cowell went to Motherwell to inspect tramcars of the Lanarkshire Tramways fitted with high-speed motors and, on his return, recommended to the Committee the purchase of these type of motors to improve the running and efficiency of the system. On the closure of the Lanarkshire Tramways, a short time later, Blackburn purchased 20 second-hand motors. These motors were from Lanarkshire Tramways ‘N’ Class cars No.’s 77-89, 45, 56 and 58. They were B.T.H. Ltd. 265J type of 35h.p. The cost was £460 including gears, and were fitted to ‘Milnes’ cars No.’s 39, 43, 45, 60 and 63, four to each car, for use on the Church section, where high-speed running could be obtained and speeds well in excess of 45m.p.h. were often reported to the press, presumably by somewhat startled motor car drivers. The labour costs of installing these motors was £145 plus £216 for rewinding the armatures.

Current consumption as of March 1932 was given as a total expenditure of £12,632 as compared to £12,268 for the previous year. This worked out as an increase of 0.09 units per car mile, which was attributed to the speeding up of the cars and the constantly increasing traffic on the roads.

Cross-Town services
A further attempt to improve services was mooted in May when plans were put forward to introduce through running of services, or cross-town services, on all routes. Unfortunately, the track work as it stood at this time would not easily accommodate such a scheme, and vast sums of money would be needed to have been spent on the road widenings and alterations, which the hoped for increase in revenue this would bring, could not justify the initial expenditure. Despite these decisions the through running service of the Cherry Tree - Preston Road route was re-introduced and was the only cross-town service. A one-hour round trip time was allowed for this service:

Railway Station - Billinge 15mins.
Billinge - Railway Station 10mins.
Railway Station - Cherry Tree 20mins.
Cherry Tree - Railway Station 15mins.

Prior to this alteration the Preston Road section was 15 minutes each way with a 10-minute service of three cars and the Cherry Tree section was a 20 minute each way with a 10 minute service consisting of four cars. The total number of cars on the through service after the alterations remained as seven trams.

The driver of ‘Milnes’ car No.66 had a narrow escape on the morning of Friday May 20th, when the tram was in collision with a lorry. The car had left the Boulevard bound for Church at 8:00a.m. and was travelling along Eanam when a lorry, owned by Messrs Forrest & Crabtree, slate merchants, which was stationary, began to move backwards, it is believed due to the vibration of a passing vehicle causing the brakes to work lose, and the lorry rolled onto the track. The driver of the tram, Mr Arthur Yates, was unable to avoid the collision. The front of the cab was badly damaged and Mr Yates received a lacerated wrist.

An extensive programme of track renewal and over head repairs was carried out and included 2.96 miles of trolley wire renewals. The track work completed was:

The work carried out amounted to 753 yards of single track

Accrington trams closed
On April 1st Accrington Corporation closed the section of tramway between Accrington town centre and Church, which meant that Blackburn cars could now only run to Church. Passengers wishing to continue on to Accrington had to alight and board a bus for the remaining part of the journey, a state of affairs that continued until 1949! On the last night the last tram from Blackburn, an Accrington car, left the Boulevard at 11:00p.m. for the last journey. It reached Church 20 minutes later and was met by the Mayor of Accrington, Councillor Constantine J.P., and many other local dignitaries, including Mrs T.E.Higham, Mayoress in 1907, who had driven the first tram from Accrington to Church, who took the controls and drove to Accrington Market. She stopped at the Grammar School where the last passenger, a Mr Fairhurst, Secretary of the Chamber of Trade, was picked up. As he received the very last ticket issued, Mrs Higham autographed it for him.

In August the Highways Department reported that they were to erect 2 sets of traffic lights, one at the intersection of Jubilee Street and Darwen Street, the other at Darwen Street Bridge. Previously the trams had to comply with compulsory stopping places at all major road junctions. The Committee applied to the Ministry of Transport to abolish these places once the traffic lights were installed, which was granted. The lights were erected in early 1933 being purchased from the Forest City Electrical Company Limited (Stretford).

Eight new buses were purchased during 1932 to replace the ex-B.B.C. Leyland ‘G’ type vehicles, which were scrapped. These new vehicles were No.’s 25-27 Leyland single-deck TS4’s and No.’s 28-32 Leyland double-deck TD2’s.

Throughout the year Tramway returns remained at, or about, the same level as 1931. Material expenses for 1932 included:

Brecknell, Willis & Co. - Trolley poles and Masts...£71. 6s. 0d.
A.E.Davies & Co. - Bamboo poles...........................£3.12s. 0d.
Yorkshire Electric Tramways - tramrails..................£20. 0s. 0d.

In November a new motor car was bought for use by Mr Cowell, the ‘Fiat’ was proving unsatisfactory. The new car was a Morris ‘Oxford’, Reg. No. BV 1868.

1933
In February the Committee became known as the Tramway and Omnibuses Committee, and on all subsequent repaints the trams carried that as the title on the rocker panels in the same small gold lettering as before.

An unusual incident happened on Sunday 26th February when a conductor needed treatment for electric shock. The conductor, James Edward Bury, of Pritchard Street, is thought to have been standing with his hand on the rail of a tram when "an electric current passed through his body" He was thrown to the floor, and passengers gave the alarm. Mr Bury was conveyed to the Royal Infirmary in the motor ambulance, and after treatment was taken back to the tramway office to resume his duties. The only explanation offered is that snow and sleet, which formed a coating on the vehicle, acted as a conductor of the current.

Mr Cowell recommended that more trams should receive upholstered seating and a purchase of 12 sets at £61.10s. 0d. per set was made from Siddall Hilton Limited. These sets were fitted to cars No. 37, 40, 41, 42, 44, 50, 52, 62, 65, 68, 70 and 71. These included the last 2 cars to be top covered No.’s 65 and 68. No. 68 emerging from the Intack Depot Body-Shop in April. 14 other cars were given complete over hauls.

Cost of painting the trams
Average repainting costs of trams - 1933
Open top cars:	£ 0s 0d
Materials.................	12 08 01
Labour.....................	38 00 00
Total.......................	50 08 01
Material Breakdown
Body.......................	10 15 03
Top Deck Rail...........	01 12 10
Top Covered Cars:	£ 0s 0d
Materials..................	18 10 10
Labour.....................	50 00 00
Total........................	68 10 10
Material Breakdown
Body........................	10 15 03
Top cover..................	07 15 07

This can be compared to the re-painting of a bus as follows:

Single-deck bus:	£ 0s 0d
Materials..................	06 18 06
Labour.....................	22 00 00
Total.......................	28 18 06
Double-deck bus:	£ 0s 0d
Materials.................	06 18 06
Labour....................	29 10 00
Total......................	40 03 04

 

During the year 14 cars were given complete repaints. These being :

‘Milnes’ Open top car: No. 59...............................£53. 8s. 1d.
‘Milnes’ Top covered cars:No.’s 43, 52, 56, 62, 65, 67, 73, 74 and 75.............£878.10s.10d. (Equal to £ 83.10s.10d. each)
‘Siemens’ cars:No.’s 30, 31, 32 and 33...£221.12s. 4d.(Equal to £55. 8s. 1d. each)

This gave a total repainting bill of £1,154.17s.11d. In addition ‘Siemens’ car No.29 and U.E.C.single-deck car No 82 were repainted on the outside only for a total of £41.17s.11d.

Influenza is believed to have caused the collapse of Driver Catterall, of the Blackburn Corporation Tramways, yesterday. His tramcar was stopped at Billinge End, and the conductor was changing the trolley, when he discovered the driver lying in the street near the front of the tramcar. Catterall recovered consciousness after treatment, and was taken home.

Northern Daily Telegraph 17th Jan 1933

The Corporation, at this time, was confident that, despite the depressed state of the trade in Blackburn, the policy of modernisation was proof of their determination to maintain a high standard of efficiency and would thus bring increased passenger traffic, this had been proved on the Church section where the introduction of the high-speed motored cars and a 5d. return fare in August had increased revenue, with through passengers of 47,713 and £288 extra in fares compared to the corresponding period last year. During the year there were 240 blind persons and 68 disabled soldiers in possession of free passes.

At just before 11:00pm on 7th September, 'Milnes' car No. 73 was passing along Railway Road when it's front bogie came off the rails at the points. This caused the tram to be thrown off the rails and the rear of the tram collied with a motor car owned by Mr H Ryden. The platform steps of the tram were damaged and damage to the motor car, a Morris Cowley Saloon Reg. CB 8399 included broken windows and step. Blackburn Corporation were liable for the accident and paid for repairs. A sum of £6. 10s 0d

It may be worth noting that during this period the Tramway Department were insured by Ocean Accident & Guarantee Corporation of Winckley Square, Preston.

Trolley wire renewals this year totalled 3½ miles and the following track work was undertaken:

Total length of track relayed was equal to 1,527 yards of single track.

On 14th November 1933 a rather curious accident happened when a tramcar was in collision with a Darwen tram. UEC single-deck car No. 84, driven by W Dyball was entering the Boulevard from Bridge street, when, according to the driver's report, the power handle came off and fell to the ground, leaving power still on. The driver immediately knocked out the circuit but it didn't prevent the tram from colliding with Darwen Corporation tramcar No. 8 which was stationary on the stopping place. The collision, according to the report, happened at about 6mph and witnesses stated that the Darwen tram was 'pushed' half it's car length. Although there were passengers on board the Darwen car there were no injuries, despite the fact that several windows were broken on both trams

To help with the costs of track renewals several purchases of second-hand rail were made totalling £316. 3s. 6d. from Nelson Corporation and £398.12. 6d. from Ashton-under-Lyne Corporation. For the transportation of these rails Kinder Bros. Ltd. of Blackburn were hired at a cost of £89.12s. 9d.

A rather amusing incident occured on Saturday 2nd December whilst a tramcar was travelling to a Blackburn Rovers match. UEC single-deck car No. 87, driven by J Wellings and with W Bulcock as conductor suddenly lurched when going through the points at the Savoy on Bolton Road. This cause the conductor, who was collecting fares to lose his balance and in trying to get hold of the hanging strap accidently caught the spectacles of a Mr E Morris causing them to fall to the floor and break both lences. Mr Morris, a Grocer and Confectioner of Brownhill Road, was and organist at St Peter's Church and in his correspondance with the Tramways Department stated: "...I have had to take my spectacles for immediate repair to Miss Flintoff, Copy Nook, as I can not do with out them when playing.."

The front end of 'Milnes' car No. 43 was badly damaged in an accident on Accrington Road on 12th December. The tramcar, driven by J Dobson failed to stop and ran into the back of a horse and cart at between 10 and 15 mph. The driver received a 'deep cut' to his hand owing to the broken glass. On examination of the sand hoppers later it was discover that these had failed to work and had not deposited any sand which would have helped the tram to stop in an emergency

On the 21st December two tramcars were in collision near to Redcap. 'Milnes' car No. 57, driven by D V Linden was traveling on the single line section just below Redcap when it came into contact with 'Milnes' car No.63, driven by R Holden. In his report Driver Linden stated that Driver Holden should have waited at Intack for him to vacate the single track section before proceeding. In his defence, Driver Holden stated that he had passed a tramcar at the Fountain Inn and thought that was his Intack tram. Only minor damage to the fenders and lifeguards were sustained on both trams.

1934
In January 1934 the death of Mr J.W.Jevons, the Senior Wages Clerk of the Department, was announced. Mr F.Standing (Assistant Wages Clerk) was promoted to fill the position, his salary increasing from £175 per annum to £180 per annum, then rising by two increments to £204 per annum, in accordance with Grade ‘A’ of the Clerical Division of the Corporation’s Grading Scheme. At the same time, Mr E.Whalley (Temporary Clerk) was placed on the permanent staff and appointed Assistant Wages Clerk, his salary increasing from £130 per annum to £175 per annum in two annual increments.

The report into an accident involvng 'Milnes' car No. 69 colliding with a pony & float that occurred on 29th January is interesting, in so much as the accident occurred near to Audley Bridge, proving that 'Milnes' cars did operate on the Audley section, even as late as 1934!

Two stopping places on the Preston Road route were altered in February with the outward stopping place at Suddell Cross on pole No.28 moving to pole N0.29 and the Strawberry Bank stop at pole No.31 moving to pole No.34 at New Park Street. On the Darwen section, the 1d. stage from the Boulevard was extended to the Infirmary.

At around 11.30pm on Saturday 10th February 1934 a Mr J Holden of Maricourt Avenue Intack was boarding an Intack bound tram, No. 38, at the Salford Bridge terminus. The crew, Driver T Slater and Conductor F Bland, had forgotten to open the shutters at the top of the stairs. As a consequence, the passengers bumped his head on the shutter whilst climbing up the stairs. He complained that this had "...damaged my bowler hat..." Though the crew stated that they could not see that it was any worse for the accident!

An accident occured at around 7.05pm on Whalley Banks when Milnes car No. 69, driven by C J Wellings failed to stop and hit a motor lorry which was parked foul of the tramtracks. Although very little damaged was caused the driver was prosecuted by the Police and fine 40s.0d. on a charge of "..failing to bring a tramcar to a standstill as soon as possible.."

Lady Knocked down by tramcar. On Saturday 17th March, Mary Clegg of Willow Terrace Darwen was knocked down by a Blackburn tram near to the Astley Bank stopping place on Bolton Road Darwen. The accident occurred about 8:27pm when 'Milnes' car No. 56 Driven by J Leeming, was descending Bolton Road. As the car was approaching the stop, the woman suddenly walked out in front of the tram "I immediately dropped sand and applied the emergency brake" stated Drive Leeming. The lady was picked up by the life tray and the car stopped within "half a car's length" Conductor Holgate called for an ambulance and then the driver, with assistance, broke the side gate of the lifeguard and released the woman. After obtaining some water and a cloth from a nearby public housed to clean her face, PC109 arrived to take down details of the accident and soon the ambulance arrived and took the lady to the Blackburn Infirmary.

Tram Speak

there is little danger of a Blackburn tram over turning, unless it ran away out of control.

James Cowell General Manager

At shortly before 11:00p.m. on the night of Monday March 26th, ‘Milnes’ car No.65 was descending Preston New Road when it over ran the curve at Suddell Cross and swung across the road. The front bogie travelled 15 feet off the rails whilst the rear bogie stayed on the track, which resulted in the car swinging broadside to the road. [see image] The driver, Isaac Hope, had slackened speed on approaching the curve, and he showed great presence of mind in stopping the tram so promptly. The front of the car fouled the up track and resulted in services being interrupted for half an hour. Mr Cowell stated that there had been some running defect in the front bogie, but alleviated fears by stating that “...there is little danger of a Blackburn tram over turning, unless it ran away out of control. The trams weigh 14½ tons, and 10½ tons is underneath the passengers...”. The accident occurred as crowds of cinemagoers were on their way home, a large crowd gathered at Suddell Cross.

On 17th April 'Milnes' car No. 63 was in collision with a Ribble omnibus near to the junction of Bank Lane and Accrington Road. The tram, driven by J Pearson, was approaching the junction when a Ribble Motors bus, reg: CK 4314, driven by A Dugdale, cut in front to turn up Bank Lane. The bus suddenly stopped to allow two cyclists going towards Blackburn to pass. This had not left enough room for the tram to pass. Only slight damaged was caused to both vehicles.

In May a Mr Critchley, a manufacturing chemist of C A Critchley & Co. Ltd, has cause to complain about the parcels department. He stated that a bottle of Armour's Liver Extract had been broken in transit between the parcels department offices and the delivery address of Grundy Chemist shop of Copy Nook. Parcel Porter Jump stated that he did not think the parcfel had been damaged in his possession, however the department were presented with a bill for the damaged item at a cost of 10s 2d.

Twelve cars were over hauled and the remaining top covered cars, No.’s 38, 46, 56, 58, 61, 64, 67, 69, 72, 74 and 75 received upholstered seating. To complete the programme a further order was placed with Siddall Hilton Limited for £441. 0s. 0d. A second-hand Leyland ‘Badger’ Tower wagon, Reg. No. WX 195, was purchased for £270 to replace the ‘Halley’ chain driven wagon, which had given excellent service since 1912.

'Milnes' car No. 58 was being driven by Driver W Green on Saturday 21st April on the Audley route, when at the Audley Bridge stopping place at bout 2.15pm, a Mrs Howard of Randall Street attempted to alight. According to the Conductor, J Smith, a gust of wind lifted up her skirt and a Mr T Norton of Great Bolton Street stood on the skirt causing it to tear!!

Maud Walsh, of Boland Street Blackburn was traveling from Blackburn to Bastwell on 'Milnes' car No.53. When she got off she stated "My attention was drawn to my coat being on fire. I went into a shop Miss L Field, Hairdresser, Seventrees, and she poured water on to extinguish it. Unfortunately a hole had been made by them with the flames. The outbreak must have been caused by a lighted pipe or cigarette and I shall have to have this leather coat repaired before it is fit to wear again. I estimate the cost of repairs will be 15s and I shall be pleased to receive this amount..." Needless to say the Transport department did not accept responsibility and did not pay.

On May 24th Mrs S Walsh of 13 Finch Street Darwen was traveling on 'Milnes' car No. 44, driven by WH Worden, between Blackburn and Church. Her 2½ year old daughter was asleep on her lap when, as the car approach Intack, shuddered as it went over the points. Her daughter fell onto the floor. Conductor C Walmsley reported that the child nose bleed slightly.

During this period, as more and more traffic attempted to assert their rights to use the public highway there were many reported incidents of other vehicles damaging trams, these incidents are too numerous and insignificant to report here, but on the whole the main culprits appear to be lorry drivers and 'Ribble' Motors buses!! These incidents are typified by the occasion of June 4th when a 6-wheel lorry, reg: TJ 2785, belonging to G Ackers of Higher Antlery Street Accrington, under took 'Milnes' car 44, driven by DV Linden at Eanam Bridge. Conductor J Charnock reported that the lorry did not stop after the accident and stated that there was damage to upright posts, a steel plate and a panel was also damaged, as was a rail of the platform gate. Inspector Omerod was on-board and managed to take details of the lorry, so that an insurance claim could be made.

Over a period in late July traffic signals were installed at two more of Blackburn's busy road junctions, Four Lanes End and Intack. Those installed at Four Lanes End were fitted with Electromatic Vehicle Actuated Signals. These were sensor pads fittted in the roadway. However, those traffic signals installed at Intack needed to be different due to the fact trams went through the junction. This problem was ingeniously over-come by the fixing of detectors on the trolley wire. To ensure the safety of passengers, the bus and tram stops at Four Lanes End and Intack were altered.

Track work at Mill Gap Darwen was being re-laid on behalf of Darwen Corporation by Bradshaw & Co Ltd of Fitzwarren Street Manchester on July 9th when open top 'Milnes' car No. 53 struck an iron hand cart as it passed the place of the track work causing damage to the hand cart and Mr F E Trigg, director of the company requested compensation.

A letter was received on 11th July from a Capt V M Mitchell of Fielding Crescent, who wished to complain about one of Blackburn Corporation’s conductors showing insolence to his wife.

Conductor W Wilding (badge No. 88) stated that they were three minutes late arriving at the Cherry Tree terminus and after changing trolley he rang his bell for the passengers, at which point the lady in question, standing on the rear platform asked hi to wait as her two children had stepped inside a shop for some ice cream. Conductor Wilding stated he to the lady that he could not wait and she moved into the inside of the car. The conductor then ‘rang the car off’, just as the car stared to move the lady returned to the platform as I was releasing the brake handle which caught her arm. Conductor Wilding stated the lady said she would “..report me for hurting her arm and that she knew more about the law than I did..”

Mrs Bennett, a witness to the incident, later stated the lady had got excited as the tram pulled off and shouted at the conductor to “stop this car at once”. Mrs Bennett further stated that if the lady had hurt her arm it was of her own doing and that the conductor had not been rude to the lady and had only being doing his job. Mrs Bennett went on to say that “…in fact if it had been me I should have lost my temper and knocked her off the tram”

Granite setts weighing 300 tons were bought from the British Quarry Company Limited for £702.16s. 0d. Other purchases included £105 for steel tyres and £603 for rail, points, crossings and tie-bars. During 1934 5.05 miles of trolley wire was renewed which included a length on the Darwen section which cost £300! The Permanent Way staff had another busy year, completing work at:

The total length of track relayed was equal to 1,755 yards of single track. Owing to the installation of high-speed motors the necessity was now greater than ever to maintain the track and over head in a first class condition.

It is interesting to note that in one of the conductor reports into an minor incident, he stated that he was on the top deck of the tram at the time of the incident and had indicated to the driver to pull way from a stop by 'tapping on the rails' This was common practice amongst the conductors, where by to indicate to the driver that the platform was clear and he could pull away the conductor tapped his ticket punch twice on the hand rails.

During the Summer of 1934, some concern was beginning to be shown by the drivers as to the condition of the rails, with particular reference being made to the amount of tar that was getting onto the rail and causing braking problems. No incident more typified this issue than that involving a collision between 'Milnes' cars No.'s 63 and 39 on July 6th at the Reddish Gate loop on the Church section. The driver of car No. 39, DJ Pearson stated:

"I was getting towards the Church end of the loop when I saw no. 63 coming along the single line. I had plenty of time to pull up but, when I put extra pressure on the hand brake, the wheels picked up on the pitch although I was 'running sand'. I let the hand brake go and applied the electric brake, but still the wheels kept sliding. I then reversed but could not get the wheels to revolve. I could see then I could not pull up in time so I put out my hand for the other driver to stop which he did. I had got the speed down to about 4mph when I collided with the other tram just on the point. The track was very bad at this place, both rails being covered with running tar" The fender and dash light glass on No. 39 were damaged as was the headlamp on No. 63, which was driven by CA Tattersall

‘Milnes’ car No. 60, driver by J Heywood arrived at the Lambeth Street stop at about 10:30am on September 7th. The conductor, D McEvoy, stated that a man upset his kit of tea causing some of it to drop onto a basket of crumpets and muffins, which were under the steps. Conductor McEvoy offered to pay for four of the crumpets but the man said it would cost him three or four shillings as his clothes were stained!!!

The traffic returns for the year ending March 31st 1934 were:
Passengers...........15,119,561
Revenue....................£84,716
Mileage..................1,079,827

Towards the end of the year the traffic returns began to show a slight increase with the December figures up by 2,829 passengers on the previous month.