![Swindon tram 1900s](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bf/Swindon_tram_1900s.jpg)
Buses in Swindon have been the major method of public transport in the region since the beginning of the 20th century. Introduced in 1927 and replacing the
tram
A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...
system in 1929, the area is now served by numerous operators.
History
Swindon Corporation was the local council formed by the 1901
Municipal Borough
Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002. Broadly similar structures existed in S ...
charter, and
Swindon Corporation Tramways started to operate electric
tram
A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...
s in 1904.
Motor-bus operation started in 1927 and two years later all the trams were replaced by this form of transport. In 1942 Swindon became one of the first authorities to take delivery of the "Arab" made by
Guy Motors
Guy Motors was a Wolverhampton-based vehicle manufacturer that produced cars, lorries, buses and trolleybuses. The company was founded by Sydney S. Guy (1885–1971) who was born in Kings Heath, Birmingham. Guy Motors operated out of its Falling ...
.
One of these, No. 51 (DHR 192), is now preserved at
RAF Wroughton
RAF Wroughton is a former Royal Air Force airfield near Wroughton, in Wiltshire, England, about south of Swindon. Ministry of Defence aviation activity ceased in 1972. The airfield now belongs to the Science Museum Group and is home to the ...
near Swindon which is an Annex of the
National Museum of Science and Industry
The Science Museum Group (SMG) consists of five British museums:
* The Science Museum, London, Science Museum in South Kensington, London
* The Science and Industry Museum in Manchester
* The National Railway Museum in York
* The Locomotion Mu ...
and open to the public on certain days of the year.
On local government re-organisation in the early 1970s the name was changed to Thamesdown Transport. Following a sale to the
Go-Ahead Group
The Go-Ahead Group plc is a passenger transport company based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, with operations in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Singapore, Norway and Germany. Formerly listed on the London Stock Exchange, in 2022 it was purchased ...
in February 2017, it was rebranded
Swindon's Bus Company
Swindon's Bus Company (formerly Thamesdown Transport) is a bus operator in England, serving Swindon and the surrounding area. Previously owned by Swindon Borough Council, in February 2017 ownership passed to the Go-Ahead Group and the operatio ...
.
Rural and inter-urban bus services around Swindon were mainly operated by Bristol Tramways (later known as
Bristol Omnibus Company
The Bristol Omnibus Company was a dominant bus operator in Bristol, and was one of the oldest bus companies in the United Kingdom. It ran buses over a wide area of Gloucestershire, Somerset, Wiltshire and neighbouring counties.
History
...
), which established a branch in Swindon in 1921. Bristol became part of the
National Bus Company, and in 1983 the Swindon branch was transferred to a new company, Cheltenham & Gloucester Omnibus Company, operating in Swindon under the name Swindon and District. Cheltenham & Gloucester was sold to its management in 1986, and absorbed into the
Stagecoach Group
Stagecoach Group is a transport group based in Perth, Scotland. It operates buses, express coaches and a tram service in the United Kingdom.
History
Stagecoach was born out of deregulation of the British express coach market in the early ...
as
Stagecoach in Swindon in 1993.
Bus station and Fleming Way
Original bus station
![Swindon Town Centre Bus Stop](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/96/Swindon_Town_Centre_Bus_Stop.jpg)
Before 1966 Swindon had no bus station, and buses departed from street stops in and around Regent Circus. The first bus station was opened in 1966 on the site of the tram station in Corporation Street. Following expansion it eventually took up most of the land between Manchester Road and Fleming Way. The site was redeveloped in the 1980s on construction of the current facility, with the bus station replaced by office accommodation now used by
Zurich Financial Services
Zurich Insurance Group Ltd is a Swiss insurance company, headquartered in Zürich, and the country's largest insurer. As of 2021, the group is the world's 112th largest public company according to ''Forbes'' Global 2000s list, and in 2011 it ran ...
.
Existing bus station
The current bus station was constructed in the 1980s, adjacent to the former site of Thamesdown Transport's garages. It predominantly acts as a terminus for buses serving destinations outside of the Swindon urban area or non-frequent services. It is also used as a coach station, with services by
National Express
National Express Group is a British multinational public transport company headquartered in Birmingham, England. It operates bus, coach, train and tram services in the United Kingdom, Ireland (National Express operates Eurolines in conjunction ...
,
Megabus Megabus may refer to:
*Megabus (Europe), a low-cost coach service with services in Europe owned by ComfortDelGro.
*Megabus (North America)
Megabus, branded as megabus.com, is an intercity bus service of Coach USA/ Coach Canada operating in the ...
and international services leaving from here. In recent years, following increased immigration from Eastern European countries, regular services to Poland have been introduced.
Redevelopment
![Thamesdown Transport Depot](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c0/Thamesdown_Transport_Depot.jpg)
In 2004, Swindon Borough Council announced the proposed redevelopment of the town centre area including the bus station.
Thamesdown Transport moved from their Corporation Street home to a new facility at Barnfield in 2005,
with the land earmarked for conversion to commercial properties. As well as town centre offices, the project also makes provision for housing, shops, cafes and restaurants.
The plans would lead to the demolition of all buildings in this area, including the current bus station, with a replacement to be built along Fleming Way.
In 2015, a multi-storey carpark adjacent to the bus station was demolished as part of this scheme. The former Stagecoach Bus Depot on Eastcott Road has been approved for development as a housing site.
Operators
Coachstyle
Coachstyle provides services to
Royal Wootton Bassett
Royal Wootton Bassett , formerly Wootton Bassett, is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, with a population of 11,043 in 2001, increasing to 11,385 in 2011. Situated in the north of the county, it lies to the west of the major ...
,
Malmesbury
Malmesbury () is a town and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England, which lies approximately west of Swindon, northeast of Bristol, and north of Chippenham. The older part of the town is on a hilltop which is almost surrounded by the up ...
and Yate from the bus station.
AD Rains
AD Rains provides services to
Royal Wootton Bassett
Royal Wootton Bassett , formerly Wootton Bassett, is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, with a population of 11,043 in 2001, increasing to 11,385 in 2011. Situated in the north of the county, it lies to the west of the major ...
,
Ashton Keynes
Ashton Keynes is a village and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England which borders with Gloucestershire. The village is about south of Cirencester and west of Cricklade. At the 2011 census the population of the parish, which includes the ...
and
Crudwell
Crudwell is a village and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England. The nearest towns are Malmesbury, about to the south-west, and Cirencester, Gloucestershire to the north-east. Also to the north-east is Cotswold Airport. Kemble village, abou ...
from the bus station, and also operate a service X70 from Swindon to
Marlborough
Marlborough may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Marlborough, Wiltshire, England
** Marlborough College, public school
* Marlborough School, Woodstock in Oxfordshire, England
* The Marlborough Science Academy in Hertfordshire, England
Austral ...
on college days.
APL Travel
APL Travel provide services to
Lechlade
Lechlade () is a town at the southern edge of the Cotswolds in Gloucestershire, England, south of Birmingham and west of London. It is the highest point at which the River Thames is navigable, although there is a right of navigation that contin ...
and
Fairford
Fairford is a town in Gloucestershire, England. The town lies in the Cotswold hills on the River Coln, east of Cirencester, west of Lechlade and north of Swindon. Nearby are RAF Fairford and the Cotswold Water Park.
History
Evidence of se ...
from the bus station.
Megabus
Megabus Megabus may refer to:
*Megabus (Europe), a low-cost coach service with services in Europe owned by ComfortDelGro.
*Megabus (North America)
Megabus, branded as megabus.com, is an intercity bus service of Coach USA/ Coach Canada operating in the ...
provide low-cost bus services to
Cheltenham
Cheltenham (), also known as Cheltenham Spa, is a spa town and borough on the edge of the Cotswolds in the county of Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort, following the discovery of mineral s ...
,
Gloucester
Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...
and London from a stop adjacent to the Sainsbury’s superstore at
Stratton.
National Express
National Express
National Express Group is a British multinational public transport company headquartered in Birmingham, England. It operates bus, coach, train and tram services in the United Kingdom, Ireland (National Express operates Eurolines in conjunction ...
provide nationwide coach travel from the bus station.
Stagecoach West
Stagecoach West
Stagecoach West is the trading name of Cheltenham & Gloucester Omnibus Company Limited, a bus operator providing services in Gloucestershire, Bristol, Swindon, Oxfordshire, Wiltshire, North Somerset and Herefordshire, in the West of England. ...
operate in West and North Swindon and in rural areas. The company also provides a Sunday service on some Swindon's Bus Company routes. Two routes are branded as Stagecoach Gold services with higher specification buses: the S6 to
Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
via
Shrivenham
Shrivenham is a village and civil parish in the Vale of White Horse, Oxfordshire, England, about south-west of Faringdon. The village is close to the county boundary with Wiltshire and about east-northeast of Swindon. The 2011 Census recorde ...
and
Faringdon
Faringdon is a historic market town in the Vale of White Horse, Oxfordshire, England, south-west of Oxford, north-west of Wantage and east-north-east of Swindon. It extends to the River Thames in the north; the highest ground is on the Rid ...
, and the 55 to
Chippenham
Chippenham is a market town
A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village ...
via
Calne
Calne () is a town and civil parish in Wiltshire, southwestern England,OS Explorer Map 156, Chippenham and Bradford-on-Avon Scale: 1:25 000.Publisher: Ordnance Survey A2 edition (2007). at the northwestern extremity of the North Wessex Downs h ...
.
Swindon's Bus Company
Swindon's Bus Company
Swindon's Bus Company (formerly Thamesdown Transport) is a bus operator in England, serving Swindon and the surrounding area. Previously owned by Swindon Borough Council, in February 2017 ownership passed to the Go-Ahead Group and the operatio ...
operate the majority of Swindon's urban services and school buses. They also provide employee services for
Nationwide, having 3 bus routes (the N1, the NW2 and the NW3), with all of the routes serving the headquarters of Nationwide. Services terminate at both the bus station and Fleming Way, although with Fleming Way now being shut, the bus services that used to terminate at Fleming Way now terminate at the Bus Station.
Salisbury Reds
Salisbury Reds operate the X5 service to Marlborough,
Pewsey
Pewsey is a large village and civil parish at the centre of the Vale of Pewsey in Wiltshire, about south of Marlborough and west of London. It is within reach of the M4 motorway and the A303 and is served by Pewsey railway station on the Rea ...
,
Amesbury
Amesbury () is a town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. It is known for the prehistoric monument of Stonehenge which is within the parish. The town is claimed to be the oldest occupied settlement in Great Britain, having been first settle ...
and
Salisbury
Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath.
Salisbury is in the southeast of Wil ...
which runs hourly from the bus station.
Ticketing
The majority of tickets purchased on Swindon's Bus Company and Stagecoach West services are honoured by both operators.
See also
*
Transport in Swindon
Transport in Swindon, England, and the surroundings has directly contributed to the town's growth and the ingress of businesses and industries.
Located on the M4 Corridor and the Great Western Railway Main Line, Swindon's transport connections ...
Notes
{{reflist
External links
Swindon Borough Council public transport homepageSwindon Park and Ride
Bus transport in England
Transport in Swindon