As 2024 dawns, local people in and around Winchester will have the chance for a free journey down Memory Lane on New Year’s Day.
The Friends of King Alfred Buses (FoKAB) will be running its restored and preserved Winchester buses on local routes through the daylight hours.
Eight buses from the famous fleet of King Alfred Motor Services, dating from the years 1956 through to 1970 will be in service, providing regular journeys over their old routes, starting from the Broadway, under the shadow of the great statue of King Alfred, whose likeness they bear on their flanks.
They will operate to Stanmore, Oliver’s Battery, Weeke Estate, Harestock, Springvale and Winnall and further afield to Sparsholt, Crawley, Sutton Scotney, Owslebury, Twyford and Colden Common providing regular timetables to all these places during the day.
In addition, guest vehicles will be operating free services from the Broadway to and from Alresford via Itchen Abbas and via Morn Hill and also to Bishop’s Waltham and Fareham, where visitors will be able to link up with a sister Hampshire bus event, Ale’n ride, provided by the Provincial Society, operating between Fareham and Gosport.
The normal buses, provided by Stagecoach across the city don’t run on New Year’s Day, so the old King Alfred Buses have their sway on the city’s streets.
The one exception is the BlueStar 1 service to and from Southampton, which will be running as usual – charging fares (bargain fares, of course!) in the normal way.
All the details of the day’s operations are contained in a full-colour printed brochure available on the day from the FoKAB stall in the Broadway for £5.
All the journeys are free, but events like this cost a lot of money to put on and the only method of recouping this is to encourage as many people as possible to buy a souvenir programme – the proceeds from which go towards the maintenance of the collection of King Alfred buses looked after by FoKAB.
The volunteers who make it all happen and how they have fun
The Friends of King Alfred Buses (FoKAB) is powered by its membership. There are more than 200 people in the group including many who live locally and also many who are away from Winchester but who want to support the restoration and preservation of its unique King Alfred buses.
Membership costs just £30 per year and FoKAB is always looking for new people to join in the fun. Whilst it’s quite possible to be an armchair member, there are lots of opportunities to get practically involved.
There are 16 vehicles in FoKAB’s collection and they all need to be maintained, cleaned, driven and conducted. There are outings and regular members’ meetings as well as working days. No skill is required to get involved and make a difference. Check out membership at kingalfredbuses.org.uk
The collection and our search for a long-term home in the Winchester area
FoKAB started in 1985 and in almost 40 years the fleet has grown from the initial two buses to 16 today. They range from almost a hundred years old (the 1929 Leyland Lion) to a mere 53 years (two Leyland Panthers built in 1970) and all have been painstakingly restored and are now available for people to share.
The greatest challenge remains to find a long-term secure home for this unique collection. It’s essential that the vehicles are safely stored indoors in dry accommodation and away from the light.
Until early December FoKAB is fortunate that it had places to keep all its fleet, but all are on short-term basis in rented buildings. The devastating fire that destroyed a shed full of buses at Penton Mewsey near Andover on December 8 demonstrates just how important it is for FoKAB to find an affordable building (or buildings) available to buy or on long-term lease in the Winchester area. It’s a tall order! Can you help?
Bus timetable listings
Here is a summary of the principal journeys into town on January 1, 2024
From Stanmore Minden Way, down the hill (4A): 0930 1130 1330 1530
From Oliver’s Battery (16): 1013 1213 1413 1613
From Dean Lane Corner, Weeke (7, 9, 13,19): 0930 1047 1107 1142 1247 1307 1330 1342 1447 1507 1530 1542 1657
From Springvale King Charles (10, 12): 1007 1110 1207 1310 1407 1510 1607
From Harestock (20): 1021 1221 1421 1621
From Alresford Perins (14): 1045 1245 1445
From Twyford PO (69): 0952 1122 1252 1422 1552 1705
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