United Automobile Services Ltd Bus Depot

United Automobile Services Ltd Bus Depot

A bus depot built in 1930 for United Automobile Services to designs by Marshall & Tweedy of Newcastle upon Tyne and London, with roof structure by A & J Main & Co Ltd of Glasgow and London. The contractor was T Clements & Sons of Newcastle. The building is designed in Greek Doric style and has undergone mid- and later-20th-century alterations.

The depot is constructed of brick and reinforced concrete, with the main elevation faced in painted concrete. The roof structure is steel with corrugated asbestos sheeting, though part of the southern section roof covering has been replaced in later times.

The building occupies an L-shaped corner site at the junction of Portland Terrace and Jesmond Road. It comprises an L-shaped bus garage with a rectangular covered entrance way projection at the north-east end. Offices and services form a narrow two-storey frontage along the south end of Portland Terrace, contained within a single-storey flat-roofed triangular projection at the south-east end.

The building is double-height with repeating pitched roofs of corrugated asbestos sheeting fitted with glazed lights to each pitch. Window frames serving the office and service areas onto Portland and Hutton Terraces are mostly replacement casements.

The principal elevation facing Portland Terrace features a Greek Doric colonnade of six symmetrical double-height vehicular entrance bays, each flanked by substantial fluted columns supporting an entablature with a triglyph frieze. Original plans show that the words 'United Automobile Services' were cast into the entablature, and these are thought to remain behind the modern bus company sign. The ramped and stepped parapet has pierced panels at either end. Each of the six vehicle bays is fitted with a panelled timber and glazed folding door of four hinged sections with paired lights, each containing six small panes to the upper parts. At each end of the colonnade there is an additional set-back bay beneath the parapet. The left end bay is double-height with a timber and glazed folding door. The right end bay is two-storey with a large central window set within a slightly raised surround, flanked by narrow window openings to each floor; the ground floor window has been largely blocked and the upper one partially blocked, while the central opening has a replacement multi-pane frame.

Attached to the right is a slightly projecting two-storey triangular office and service wing. On Portland Terrace, this has six bays with a low parapet band and five first-floor windows. Both floors have a large central window opening set within a slightly raised surround. On the first floor this is flanked on each side by a pair of original window openings. On the ground floor it is flanked to the right by a pair of original window openings (one converted to an entrance) and to the left by an original narrow end window opening and three inserted narrow openings. The right end bay has an original entrance fitted with a modern roller shutter, with an original stair window in a raised surround above. On Hutton Terrace, the canted section has two storeys plus basement. It has seven first-floor window openings with paired single lights to the end bay (matched by paired basement openings) and five large window openings to each floor. Basement openings are all narrow, fitted with timber louvres.

The north-west elevation facing Jesmond Road is blind and rendered with repeated triangular gables, the lower parts obscured by an extension. The covered entrance way projection at the east end of this elevation retains its original concrete-clad classical opening with parapet; original plans indicate the words 'United Automobile Services' were placed upon the latter, but if executed these are no longer visible. The original timber folding door has been removed and a half-height brick wall blocks entry, whilst a wide inserted vehicle opening has been made through the west elevation.

The rear elevation facing the car park has a short canted section with first-floor double fire doors reached by a mid-20th-century fire escape with double vehicular doors below. The remainder of the rear elevation is rendered with three asymmetrical gabled units. The visible part has ten tall, regularly-spaced small-paned ground-floor metal-framed windows, with the remainder obscured by an attached linear garage range with an exposed brick rear wall.

The interior retains the original 1930 steel trussed beam roof structure with lateral wind bracing and top lighting by glazed panels. Some of the original linear inspection pits at the north-east and south-east ends survive, with a number retaining their original ornamental grilles. A mid- to later-20th-century corridor with blockwork rear wall and lean-to glazed roof has been inserted against the inner face of the north-west elevation. The mid-20th-century dividing wall at the south end of the garage remains in modified form compared to the original proposed plans: it has brick lower parts and asbestos sheets within a frame above, with an original central opening; an original folding door has been replaced by a roller shutter and an inserted door opening has been made. The south wall of the garage separates it from the office and service accommodation behind, which also extends along the south-west wall. The ground floor has a continuous series of windows and doors supported on a substantial steel beam. The first floor has six large regularly-spaced windows, all but one retaining their original steel-framed small-paned glazing.

The office and service accommodation comprises a series of polygonal spaces. The basement contains a former triangular store room with a shuttered concrete ceiling and a short corridor opening into a former heating chamber and coal store. The ground floor has a large triangular general store with windows opening onto the garage, and a short corridor leads to the former foreman's office, battery store, and men's cloakrooms and WCs. A canted stairwell houses a metal stick balustrade with a ramped wooden handrail. The first floor has a corridor opening left into the former rest room, ladies' cloakroom and WCs, and opening right to the triangular-shaped former canteen. All spaces have late-20th-century doors and inserted suspended ceilings, with shuttered concrete ceilings visible above. The internal walls of the covered way are painted with steel beams supporting a flat roof.

The internal mid-20th-century enclosed corridor attached to the inner face of the north-west elevation is declared not to be of special architectural or historic interest. However, any works which may affect the character of the listed building may still require Listed Building Consent, which is a matter for the Local Planning Authority to determine.