Taunton Vintage Bus Day 2026
We welcome you to the
2026 Taunton Vintage Bus Day with the strap line “A Grand Day Out” as
the excellent programme of the day proclaims!
Like the 2025 event, it was organised by the Thames Valley & Great
Western Omnibus Trust and was filmed by the independent transport videos cameras
on Sunday 31st May 2026. A
total of ten routes were operated which included a ‘Western National Mystery
Tour’.
Our filming locations included Fore Street, Castle Green and Castle
Way. As last year the buses operated
from stops along The Parade as the former bus station is still having its
construction work done that will transform it in to a ‘transport hub’. Apart from the preserved buses running in service
we have also included the contemporary vehicles of First South West where
we see the new battery-electric Yutong E10 single-deckers and Yutong U11DD
double-deckers in the new Firstbus corporate livery of deep purple and
light grey as well as the National Express coaches that pass through the
town. This we believe gives an
interesting comparison of modern day vehicles with those of the past. As usual
a good number of bus companies were represented at this event. These included the Bristol group
of companies, Devon General, Eastern National, King Alfred, Royal Blue,
Hants & Dorset, Wilts & Dorset, Southern National, Western National
and even West Yorkshire, some
local independents and the list goes on!
We take two rides on this programme for your enjoyment.
The first ride is on route 205 to
Wiveliscombe on board former Bristol Omnibus (Bristol Joint Services) C7246
(FHU 59D), a 1966 Bristol Lodekka FLF6B with an ECW H70F body. We have put a camera on the front bulkhead
window, over the bonnet to capture the road ahead and the sounds of the Bristol
BVW engine complete with a 4-speed gearbox, which gives a maximum speed of 37
mph – which was perfectly adequate for a city bus for plying the streets of
Bristol. We also have another camera in
the lower saloon for the experience of the passengers. Our cameras return from Wiveliscombe to
Taunton for more filming in the town and at Castle Green were the buses were
laying over between duties or just on display to be inspected by the many
enthusiasts and members of the public.
Our second ride is on the Taunton Town Service – route 272 operated by
1936 (VDV 753) an open-top Bristol Lodekka LDL6G, built in 1957 with an ECW
H70RD body but converted to open top in 1973 from the Western National fleet on
this interesting circular route that passes the current First South West
depot. Again we have a camera on the
front bulkhead window and one in the lower saloon for your travelling
experience. We complete our filming on Fore Street and Castle Green as the
buses begin leaving for home and some views of the new First South West buses
giving quite a comparison of bus design of what went before them!