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| Thamesdown Transport Limited |
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| E-mail Address (Customer Services): j.dosanjh@thamesdown-transport.co.uk |
| Brief History |
Early Years On 22 September 1904 Swindon Corporation opened its tramway system in the town with a depot in Corporation Street. During 1927 the first motor buses were introduced to cover the areas not served by the trams. Additional buses were bought in 1928 to serve the expanding Swindon Borough boundary. The trams were replaced by buses between 6 May and 11 July 1929, when the last tram ran. 1940s and 1950s During the second world war several bus services were curtailed. However, new factories were built around the outskirts of Swindon to aid the war effort with new and expanded services to these sites for workers. In 1940 women conductors were taken on to replace men called up for military service. In the 1950s the town expanded and new areas served were Penhill, Walcot East, Lawn, Park North and Park South. 1960s and 1970s The town continued to expand in the 1960s with the Princess Margaret Hospital, Covingham and Greenmeadow joining the network. The first service to be operated by the driver only (i.e. without a conductor to take the fares) was started on 4 May 1969. On 1 April 1974 Swindon Corporation Transport was renamed Thamesdown Transport following the major reorganisation of local government 1980s and 1990s From the early 80s a coaching fleet was built up undertaking private hires, coastal expresses and holiday tours. All such activities were stopped in 2002 so that the company could concentrate on its core business of local bus services. In 27 September 1986 Thamesdown Transport became a limited company at ‘arms length’ from the owning borough council ready for deregulation. Deregulation of local bus services came into effect on 26 October 1986. In the 80s Thamesdown’s buses became a familiar sight in rural areas around Swindon operating various replacement services which had been withdrawn by Bristol Omnibus. In 1996 the first ‘low floor’ buses were introduced and today almost all our town services are operated by these types of buses. The new millennium Services in the early 00s were expanded to serve the new north Swindon housing developments. In December 2002 the town network was revised to serve the new Great Western Hospital at Common Head. We celebrated our centenary in 2004. Events during the year included a talk about the trams, vintage bus services around the town, an exhibition at the Steam Museum and a special bus rally held at the Wroughton Science Museum on 12th September. In July 2005 we vacated our Corporation Street depot and moved to a new modern purpose built one at Barnfield Road. |
