Today has seen two news items relating to the Hampshire market town of Alton. While two days a week sees Cresta Coaches operate shopper bus routes 206/208 to nearby villages, Stagecoach South is very much the dominant operator. The town used to have its own bus depot, but these days services are now operated by an impressive six premises (five depots and one outstation).
- Aldershot: 9, 65X, 113, 123
- Basingstoke: 13
- Farringdon: 64 (some), 64X
- Guildford*: 65
- Portsmouth: 37X, 38, 38X
- Winchester: 64
(*I believe it is the Peasmarsh depot, rather than Leas Road depot, in Guildford that work the 65.)
The single outstation among the list of depots is Farringdon Business Park, located in the village of Lower Farringdon, around four miles south of Alton. It has been reported that this operating centre officially closed today, with vehicles moved to Winchester depot. The licence shows an authorisation of five vehicles here, with a look through the handy bustimes.org website’s past tracking for local routes showing at least three regular dead runs to/from Farringdon on weekdays. The vehicles appear to have been regularly workings as follows, with I presume the longer slack time between some journeys in Winchester allowing for any required fuelling/vehicle swaps (although I guess these could also be done at other times during layover time between trips in Winchester too if required). These include journeys on routes 64, 64X, 67 and 69. I had previously twigged a link between Farringdon outstation and the not-so-local Winchester to Fareham 69 after recently being turfed off a late running Winchester-bound 69 before reaching the bus station, so the bus could head straight to Peter Symonds College for a college run which I noted on bustimes.org at the time appeared to run dead to Farringdon afterwards.
64: 0633 Alton – Winchester (0720)
64: 0730 Winchester – Eggars School (0820)
64: 0845 Alton – Winchester (0937)
64: 1045 Winchester – Alton (1135)
64: 1145 Alton – Winchester (1237)
64: 1245 Winchester – Alton (1335)
64: 1345 Alton – Winchester (1437)
64: 1445 Winchester – Alton (1535)
64: 1545 Alton – Winchester (1637)
64: 1650 Winchester – Alton (1740)
67: 0715 Petersfield – Winchester (0841)
64: 0845 Winchester – Alton (0935)
64: 0945 Alton – Winchester (1037)
69: 1325 Winchester – Fareham (1450)
69: 1455 Fareham – Winchester (1635)
64X: 1648 Peter Symonds College – Alton (1752)
64X: 0749 Four Marks – Peter Symonds College (0848)
64: 0945 Winchester – Alton (1035)
64: 1045 Alton – Winchester (1137)
64: 1145 Winchester – Alton (1235)
64: 1245 Alton – Winchester (1337)
64: 1345 Winchester – Alton (1435)
64: 1445 Alton – Winchester (1537)
64: 1545 Winchester – Alton (1635)
64: 1645 Alton – Winchester (1737)
64: 1750 Winchester – Alton (1840)
Since posting about this on our Facebook page, I am told that Stagecoach are still looking to possibly replace the outstation rather than permanently move these workings to Winchester, and that the former Farringdon-based drivers are remaining on a separate Alton rota.
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In more positive news, though…
There was much disappointment when the Alton Bus Rally & Running Day sadly had to be cancelled in 2023, so it was most welcome this evening to see the announcement that the same familiar team behind this long running event are putting their personal time and experience back into an event this year, to be held 1000-1600 on Sunday 21st July. Despite relocating to a new venue at Alton College, it will still be free to visit and still offer a frequent network of free bus services both around the town as well as out through the Hampshire countryside to neighbouring villages. In addition to up to 100 buses and coaches operating in service or on static display, a variety of sales stands and refreshments will also be on site, as before.
As well as a smart new ‘Hampshire Bus’ theme for the event’s logo and website, which I feel is a welcome refresh to what came before, car parking is one other change to be aware of. In connection with the change of venue, visitors arriving by car will be required to park in one of the various public car parks in Alton, however a free Park & Ride bus service will be in operation between these and the rally site (or just a half mile walk from the High Street for those who fancy a stroll). The railway station will also be served by free shuttle buses for visitors arriving by train. Timetables for the free town centre Park & Ride and railway station Rail Link routes, as well as the usual free feeder services to the event from Basingstoke, Guildford and Winchester, are expected to be published in June.
Timetables for the wider network of free bus services that will take visitors further afield into the countryside will be published as usual in the informative event programme, from which the proceeds fund and therefore help secure the event’s continued existence on the rally calendar. Operators/vehicle owners wishing to enter a vehicle, or stallholders wishing to apply to set up a sales stand, can do so from March when entry forms will be available on the website (and sent out to those who have exhibited within the last five years).
For more information, and to keep up to date with further developments, you can visit the event’s refreshed website at altonbusrally.org.uk
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…and, while talking of Alton
A reminder that the B3004 Alton to Bordon road will be closed between 5th February and 5th May, and then again from 29th June to 11th October, for Scottish & Southern Electricity roadworks. This will result in Stagecoach routes 13, 113 and 123 being diverted between Alton (High Street) and Bordon/Whitehill, with buses heading west out of Alton along Butts Road, down the B3006 Selborne Road to Greatham, then Petersfield Road north to Whitehill and around the Bordon Loop (and the reverse in the other direction). As a result East Worldham, Kingsley and Sleaford will be cut off from the bus network, as will Oakhanger on the 123.
To allow route 13 to remain under a three hour round trip despite its longer diversion via Selborne, and keep the peak vehicle requirement at three vehicles, departures will leave Basingstoke earlier (xx40 instead of xx50) and return workings arrive back later (leaving Alton xx45 instead of xx35, arriving Basingstoke xx35 instead of xx30). To further achieve this, buses will run the full length of Greenfields Avenue in Alton, with Southview Rise and the section of Old Odiham Road past Alton College now being served by an amendment to infrequent weekdays only Alton town circular route 9. Rather than five departures departing Alton at 1000, 1020, 1140, 1200 and 1220 with a round trip time of 15 minutes, route 9 will be reduced to three round trips departing at 1000, 1100 and 1200 with a round trip time of 19 minutes. Instead of turning left out of Gilbert White Way straight down Old Odiham Road, route 9 buses will divert to serve Southview Rise and the eastern end of Greenfields Avenue, before turning right on to Old Odiham Road and resuming normal route into Alton town centre.
This will also affect Alton College routes 113 and 123 which will also be diverted with revised timings to account for the longer routing. The morning 113 will depart points between Liphook and Bordon 15 mins earlier and the morning 123 points between Haslemere and Lindford 10 mins earlier. In the afternoon, the 123 will have around an extra 20 minutes running time added between the college and Lindford timing point.
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