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This style of vehicle was the Morris Commercial J or JB Type. The J Type was produced between 1949 to 1957 and the JB between 1957 and 1961. The J Type is fitted with a 1476 cc four-cylinder side-valve engine, whilst the JB Type had an overhead valve 1489 cc, BMC B-Series engine. These GPO vehicles were fitted with front and rear wings made of
rubber. An extract from An Area Planning and General Purpose Vehicle A description of a general purpose vehicle for the transport of staff engaged on planning and development, exchange construction, precision testing and other duties. The vehicle is a Morris Commercial Utilibus and carries a party of six including driver. With the current methods of providing and maintaining the telecommunication system, it is economically advantageous in many cases to convey a number of men in official transport over consider able distances to and from the site of the work. Until recently this need has been met by modifying existing vehicles but, although this arrangement has served satisfactorily, the increased need for carrying extra passengers, particularly for conveying staff engaged on exchange construction work, has caused attention to be directed towards providing a .vehicle designed for the purpose. Concurrently with the passenger problem the provision of suitable transport for staff employed in planning and development duties required attention, since, for this purpose also, modified standard vehicles showed certain limitations. It also came to light, during recent investigations, that there is a need for a cable test van for use in conditions where the larger and more expensive test van described in a previous article1 could not be justified. It was therefore decided to develop a vehicle to meet all three requirements and, bearing in mind the existing range of vehicles in service, a Morris Commercial Utilibus (basically a Morris Commercial 10cwt. "J" type vehicle similar to the 10cwt. van Type 1 recently brought into service) was chosen as the basis of the new vehicle. A general view of the new vehicle is shown below. In rearranging the interior of the commercial vehicle, seating was an important consideration and it was decided to make provision for seating six persons including the driver. To provide for carrying four passengers in the rear of the vehicle the nearside seat of the Utilibus was retained, this seat being suitable for accommodating three persons comfortably. On the offside a single seat immediately behind the driver was also retained but a bench seat on the offside was removed to make space for a large folding table suitable for laying out maps when the vehicle is being used on development and planning duties. The passenger seating accommodation in the rear of the vehicle is shown in Fig. 2. Both seats can be folded back against the side of the vehicle and secured by leather ties, leaving a clear floor space for carrying stores and equipment, thus extending the use of the vehicle to that of light stores carrying should occasion demand. The space beneath the nearside seat forms two lockers, one on either side of the wheel-arch, which can be secured with a padlock in conjunction with a hasp and staple, the latter being attached to the underside of the seat which forms the lid of the lockers. To facilitate the carrying of an extension ladder (8ft. 6in., closed; 20ft., extended) it was necessary to re-mount the driver's seat on a metal frame-work in place of the pressed metal tool box provided, so that the space beneath the seat could be effectively used to stow the forward end of the ladder. In effecting this rearrangement it was decided to change both driver's and front passenger's seats to the Post Office standard type of seat; and to use the displaced tool box for mounting the front passenger's seat as this needed to be set back to provide adequate leg room for the passenger and to allow for the fitting of the folding table set immediately in front of the passenger's seat and above the engine casing. By covering in the nearside step-well a level floor was formed immediately in front of the passenger seat with the advantage of providing easy and unrestricted access via the nearside door as well as a comfortable riding position. The driver's seat is adjustable in the forward and rearward directions, and this facility has also been extended to the passenger's seat so as to provide a comfortable position when the table is in use. The table in the rear of the vehicle was built as an
independent unit for securing to the floor and side of the vehicle body. In
designing the table unit it was arranged that when it is in the closed
position the unit projects into the vehicle body by no more than the
thickness of the table top beyond the width of the wheel-arch over which the
table unit is mounted. This gives the maximum available floor space and
facilitates the housing of the extension ladder, which, at the forward end,
must enter the space beneath the driver's seat. To guide the ladder into
position and to provide protection for the table top in the closed position,
a rubbing strip was fixed between the two aluminium alloy angles securing
the table unit to the floor. The table top is secured in position, when
lowered, by two turn-buttons which turn into slots in the table edge so as
to avoid any projections. The frame-work of the table unit, to which the hinged supports and top are secured, has been arranged to provide two deep pockets, one at each end, for stowing rolled maps, and m the space between these pockets, above the wheel arch, a partitioned compartment provides accommodation for Engineering Instructions, Telephone Directories and the forms associated with planning and development duties. Pencil grooves in the top rail of the unit, together with an edge moulding, complete the table equipment. When erected, the top of the table is horizontal-a slight disadvantage on planning and development duties, when a sloping table may be preferred, but essential when the vehicle is employed on precision testing. A light fixed above the table provides a measure of general illumination within the vehicle for those occasions when it is necessary; and to complete the internal equipment a handle on the inside of the rear doors facilitates the open ing of these doors from the inside of the vehicle and so provides ready means of exit from the rear of the vehicle.
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Last revised: March 13, 2026FM3 | |||||||||||||||||
