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 Optare Solo M880SL inYeovil in February 2016 | |
| Parent | Alan Graham |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2000 |
| Headquarters | Southgate Road,Wincanton BA9 9EB[1] |
| Service area | Dorset Somerset Wiltshire |
| Service type | Bus & coach services |
| Hubs | Yeovil Isle of Portland |
| Fleet | 70 (February 2021)[2] |
| Website | www |
South West Coaches is a privately owned bus company that operates services aroundDorset,Somerset, andWiltshire, inSouth West England.
Reggie Wake started bus services fromSouth Barrow in February 1930. Business expanded duringWorld War II and the main base was moved to nearbySparkford. A trunk route fromYeovil toCastle Cary andShepton Mallet was started in 1947 and operated bydouble-decker buses from 1949 until 1968. Several other operators were taken over which led to setting up a second depot inWincanton. In 1964 it became alimited company, Wakes Services Limited.[3] By 1979 some of the smaller services had been withdrawn but the Yeovil-Shepton mallet service continued. At this time 4 buses and 21 coaches were in use.[4]Bus deregulation in the 1980s encouraged further growth of the network to places such asTaunton,Frome andBridport in Doreset. In 1996 the fleet had 35 vehicles. The Wake family sold the business in 1999 to AG Hulbert & Son of Yeovil and the combined business branded as South West Coaches.[3][5]
In April 2008, Safeway Services ofSouth Petherton was purchased,[6][5] followed in October 2009 bySureline on theIsle of Portland.[7][8]
| Founded | 2002 |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Unit 17, Tradecroft Industrial Estate,Isle of Portland,Dorset[citation needed] |
| Service area |  United Kingdom |
| Service type | Urban bus services |
| Destinations | Isle of Portland,Weymouth,Dorchester,Bridport,Yeovil |
| Fleet | 15[9] |
Sureline was abus operator based in theIsle of Portland,Dorset, on the south coast ofEngland. It operated from Portland through Weymouth to Dorchester. Formed in 2002, Sureline became defunct in 2009 and was taken over by South West Coaches.[8]
Sureline was established in 2002 by David Beaman and Bill Landucci. Operations began on 24 August that year with a service running between Portland and Dorchester on weekdays only.[8] Sureline was initially based atSouthwell Business Park but relocated to Tradecroft Industrial Estate, near the village ofEaston, in July 2003. They first began operating with a fleet of eight Mercedes 709 buses. By early 2003, four more buses of the same type had been acquired with seven used for daily services. Sureline's operations extended from 2003 with new routes and timetables, including an extension toPortland Bill. In 2004, the fleet was increased with the arrival of two Dennis Dart buses, while one of the 709s were scrapped.[8]
While local services continued to evolve and expand, in September 2005, Sureline also began two services from Dorchester toYeovil. One went viaMaiden Newton andCattistock, while the other went viaCerne Abbas andSherborne. 2006 saw the opening of the operator's new maintenance facility at Southwell Business Park. By this time, Sureline was employing approximately thirty drivers and had a peak vehicle requirement of fourteen. Some service reduction was seen in 2007, including a reduction of Saturday operations on the main Portland to Dorchester route. Weekend operations of the two Yeovil routes were transferred to Nordcat of Sturminster Newton. The timetable changes continued into 2008 and 2009; the 212 and X37 services from Dorchester to Yeovil were amended to run on schooldays only, while more focus was given to the X10 and X20 routes in the Weymouth to Dorchester sector. This resulted in a much reduced service to and from Portland, despite being the operator's base.[8]
On 26 October 2009, Sureline was taken over by South West Coaches ofWincanton, who were also the successors to the long-established Wakes of Sparkford and Wincanton. Both Sureline founders, Beaman and Landucci, left the company. To date, the new operators continue many of the services that were provided by Sureline including the original route on Portland.[8] Speaking to theDorset Echo, Beaman claimed the decision to sell Sureline was made to "safeguard its future", while he also blamed increasing government regulation for small bus firm, resulting in increased difficulty to generate profit.[9]
South West Coaches have little competition in their operating area since another independent operator,Nippy Bus, with its N10 route competing with South West Coaches' route 81, ceased operations in 2017.[10][11]First Hampshire & Dorset still competes on the Portland routes.[12] In most villages, South West Coaches is the sole bus operator, so that public transport users are heavily reliant on its services. The geographical area covered stretches fromMinehead andTaunton in the west toSalisbury in the east and from theIsle of Portland andBournemouth in the south toWarminster andFrome in the north.[2][13]
The company operates local town services inYeovil under contract toSomerset County Council, exSureline routes inDorchester,Weymouth and on theIsle of Portland. A large proportion of its work is coach trips as well as private hire and school contracts. In Somerset, South West Coaches is the leading provider of infrequent services.[14][15] In Dorset, it provides many school services forDorset Council.[16]
In July 2017, the company began to operate aShaftesbury toGillingham service.[17] In October 2017, after First Dorset had ended its service fromWyke Regis toWeymouth, South West Coaches agreed to a local request to take over the route.[18] In November 2017, with the unexpected closure of Nippy Bus, South West Coaches took over providing transport services toStrode College.[19] On an evening in March 2018, a South West Coaches bus travelling throughChard had windows smashed by projectiles thrown by boys aged about 10 to 13.[20]
There are three Depots inSomerset, atWincanton,Yeovil, andWest Pennard, and one inDorset, in theIsle of Portland.[2]
As at February 2021, the fleet consisted of some seventy buses and minibuses.[2]
Media related toSouth West Coaches at Wikimedia Commons
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