NV Nuyens (NMVB contractor) 158126 (BHN 634) in Willebroek – 1 Jun 1990

Friday 1 June 1990 – NV Nuyens 158126 (BHN 634), a Fiat powered Van Hool 440 integral that was new in June 1975, seen in Dokter Persoonslaan in Willebroek, the town where the company was based.
Nuyens was a contractor to NMVB (Nationale Maatschappij van Buurtspoorwegen), the national bus and tram company of Belgium. NMVB operated its own large bus and tram fleet which carried four digit fleet numbers but the buses operated by contractors carried six digit fleet numbers – the first four digits relate to the NMVB contract number with the final two digits are the operators own fleet number.
The destination blind shows details for NMVB service 52a to St. Amands, a community about 13km west of the town. Featured on the blind is the logo of Belgian Railways (above the ‘a’ alongside the ‘52’) as the service had its origins as a Belgian Railways contracted service, one of their railway substitution services ancillary to rail service 52 (Antwerpen-Dendermonde-Ghent).

The canal that links the navigable River Schelde with Brussels and the industrial area around Charleroi in the south of the country passes through the heart of Willebroek. A large lift up bridge (which is reflected in the windscreen of the bus) provides a vital link from one side of the town to the other. When this photograph was taken it was the route of the main Mechelen-Sint Niklaas road (N16) although new upgrades and a by-pass have removed that traffic volume. The bridge caused traffic hold ups and we had been held up here for a while as had the bus driver. He was quite intrigued at being photographed from the car and said hello to me as we crawled by each other in the slow moving traffic. I took the photograph from the passenger seat of a British right-hand drive car.