It is not long to go now until we can see in the New Year in Winchester, when the Friends of King Alfred Buses (FoKAB) puts its fleet of restored and preserved buses on the road to give free rides to the public over their old routes in the city and surrounding districts.
On New Year’s Day, all Stagecoach services in and around Winchester are suspended for the New Year’s holiday. This leaves the city streets clear to be taken over by the old buses, providing their special free services as they have been for over forty years.
The timetables give a basic frequency along all the main roads in the city. In addition, there are regular free buses throughout the day to and from Alresford, Bishop’s Waltham, Colden Common, Twyford, Owslebury, Oliver’s Battery, Sparsholt, Crawley, Worthy Down, Sutton Scotney and East Stratton. All services will start and finish at the traditional terminus for the King Alfred services in the Broadway.
FoKAB will be welcoming a very special guest on the day in the form of Winchester’s Mayor, Councillor Sudhakar Achwal, who is coming at 1000 to take a ride on the recently restored Leyland Titan double-decker HOR 811. At 75 years old, this will be the oldest bus in service on January 1st, and the Mayor will be travelling to Sunnydown Road in Oliver’s Battery and back on what was once King Alfred’s route 16 – serving a destination that isn’t on the regular route network these days.
Once again, special route 69 will be operating through the day, linking Winchester with Fareham, where FoKAB’s friends the Provincial Society are running their “Ale & Ride” event – this link was very well used last year.
New for this year is the 47a service, running from the Broadway along the line of Hants & Dorset’s famous old 47 service as far as Bushfield Roundabout, terminating in Winchester South Park & Ride site (this is not St Catherine’s but the other main P & R site in Winchester!). Visitors will be able to park there and ride free into the city, every half an hour from 1000 until 1600.
In addition to the King Alfred buses, several other restored and preserved buses and coaches will be joining in the day’s operations, including a unique AEC Regal coach with ECW coach body, one of the famous Midland Red motorway coaches, a former Stagecoach Leyland Olympian, a Southdown Leyland Leopard and a Hants & Dorset Bristol RELL, as well as a special mystery vehicle, to be revealed on the day! All will be running from Broadway from 0915 until 1630.
Full details are contained in the brightly-coloured souvenir programme available online from www.kingalfredbuses.org.uk at £7 including postage or on the day from the FoKAB stand in the Broadway for £6.
