THE SOUTH OF ENGLAND BUS IMAGE GALLERY
Hants & Dorset
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 Compared to the number of MW coaches, H&D's MW bus fleet was much smaller and powered by the five cylinder Gardner engine, making them MW5G models. Still in Tilling green is 811 (XEL553) of 1958. The other buses here are former Wilts & Dorset machines, with the Bristols still in Tilling red and cream. The dual purpose MW6G is 722 (134AMW) new in 1963. To its right is LH6L 533 (XEL837K), part of a batch shared with Hants & Dorset back in late 1971. The companies had been under common management since 1964 under Tilling and merged under NBC in 1972. NBC foisted some lightweight Ford and Bedford buses on its subsidiaries in the seventies, but H&D and W&D both had some Willowbrook dual door bodied Bedford VAM70 buses in 1968. The only bus in NBC poppy red here is former W&D 820 (LMR740F). |
 From the first delivery of Bristol LH6L buses is 3503 (DEL539L) in Basingstoke in unrelieved NBC poppy red. Unfortunately the paint used initially was prone to fading in sunlight and several Basingstoke buses looked more like they were in poppy pink than poppy red! |
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 Bristol LH6L 3511 (NEL844M) delivered to Basingstoke the following year looking better with its white band. |
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 An LH6L from the following year's delivery, 3576 (HJT47N). |
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 At first sight this might be thought to be another LH but is in fact one of those NBC lightweights, ECW bodied Ford R1014 3593 (RRU593N). It is seen in Salisbury Bus Station with two Bristol Lodekkas, a red former Wilts & Dorset FS6G 646 (684AAM) and a green Bristol Omnibus FLF6B, 7249 (FHU507D) on the long distance service to Bath. |
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