2009 bus rally

This Sunday (August 9th) will see the roads around Bristol awash with buses. But they are not just any ordinary buses that ply our streets on a daily basis - these are buses which have been lovingly restored by enthusiasts and are brought out on special occasions for the general public to enjoy and even ride on.

The gathering of vehicles is even more amazing when you learn that their combined age is over 4,000 years old and over sixty percent of the vehicles were built in the city over half a century between 1934 and 1984. Jointly organised by the Bristol Vintage Bus Group and the Avon Valley Railway, the event has grown from humble beginnings to become one of the largest gatherings of Bristol built buses in the country.

Built by Bristol Commercial Vehicles or its predecessor at its Brislington Works the Bristol badged buses and coaches attract a large following, and will be making their way ‘back home’ from as far afield as Cornwall, Staffordshire and East Sussex. The event is a rare opportunity for the general public to get up close to these lovingly restored vehicles, many of which were crafted by hand rather than mass produced by machine on production lines.

The oldest vehicle AHU 803, a 1934 Bristol J Type, served with Bristol Omnibus Company for 24 years before being sold to Nailsworth Boys Club as a mobile caravan, with a kitchen and bunk beds fitted inside and a facility for carrying boats on the roof. Saved from the scrapman in 1978 it has been fully restored over a twenty year period and this year celebrates its 75th birthday.

Based at the Brislington Park and Ride site on the A4, many of the collection of buses - including AHU 803 - will be stretching their legs around the city allowing visitors to experience the pleasure of travelling on these vehicles free of charge.

Every twenty minutes there will be a bus leaving the Park and Ride site for a journey into Bristol, calling at Bristol Temple Meads and the Horsefair, whilst there will also be trips with a similar frequency to the Bristol Vintage Bus Group’s headquarters at Brislington and the Avon Valley Railway at Bitton.

The Avon Valley Railway’s Development Manager, David Cole, has been involved with the organising of the event for the last six years, and it’s not just because of its link to the railway – he also owns a Bristol bus as well. ‘I’ve had an interest in transport since my teens’ said David, ‘and one day a friend of mine said he was going to buy a bus. I thought he was nuts but went along with him for the ride and I ended up buying it instead of him. I’m not really sure to this day why I bought it but I’m really glad that I did. Each vehicle has a character of its own, just like a human, and I’m still getting used to my bus six years after buying it.’

David’s bus – a Bristol Medium Weight built in 1961 – will be on display in Broadmead this Saturday as part of the Mall Bristol’s Tea Party themed fun day and will give visitors an insight into what to look forward to.

The event on Sunday runs between 10am and 5pm from the Brislington Park and Ride on the A4, and is free to enter.  For more information please contact Bitton Station on 0117 932 5538.