“This is the last copy of the Chausson to have driven in Toulouse”: enthusiasts restore an emblematic bus from 1962
It dates from 1962 and has transported thousands of passengers through the streets of Toulouse (Haute-Garonne). A Chausson bus model, reformed since 1976, is currently undergoing a major renovation operation by a partner association of Tisséo, the Toulouse public transport organizer. After several years dedicated to recovering this bus in very poor condition, it has now been the subject of a meticulous and long restoration work since March 2021 to restore it to its original appearance.
“We spotted this Chausson bus near Saint-Gaudens in 2005 and we went out of our way to recover it because it is the last model of the Chausson that exists today and which circulated on the Toulouse network, says Jérôme Bonato, president of the Association for the preservation of the heritage of urban and interurban transport in Toulouse (ASPTUIT) and driver at Tisséo for 26 years. There was another model but it was destroyed during the explosion of the AZF factory in 2001. In the 1960s, Toulouse was the second city in France after Paris to have so many Chaussons so we want to preserve this vehicle historical. There is a lot of work to be done before seeing it rolling again, with its original green and cream colors because it is really damaged”.
Being able to show how it works to the general public
After repatriating the bus to the Pink City, which had been converted into an itinerant trade then used by a carpenter, the members of ASPTUIT worked for 560 hours to strip the vehicle: engine, gearbox, windows, wood installed by the previous owner. November 2022, the bus traveled from the premises of the Safra company in Albi (Tarn) to undergo high-pressure sandblasting to clean it of its rust.
In March, the association, which has 120 members, hopes to return to the Toulouse premises in order to begin the final reconstruction of the bus. “We have to redo the chassis, the roof, the ceiling, rebuild all the tops of the windows, put back the bars… even if we know that this vehicle will not be able to run on the network, we want to show how it works during demonstrations”, says Jérôme Bonato.
“The work in Albi will cost 75,000 euros then the last stage in Toulouse around 30,000 euros. We are supported in this project by the Heritage Foundation but we also launched an online kitty “. The association estimates the restoration work at three years and envisages the end of the project at the end of 2024 or the beginning of 2025.