Eastbourne Bus Running Day 2024

Eastbourne Bus Running Day 2024
Welcome to the 2024 Eastbourne Running Day
A very warm welcome to the Eastbourne Classic Bus Running Day.
Welcome to Eastbourne and to the imposing surroundings of Eastbourne Station, with thanks our host, Southern Railways.
As ever, this event seeks to recreate re-create the local services that operated from Eastbourne from the 50's to the 70's using preserved vehicles of that era, together with a number of more recent preserved vehicles.
The vehicles in service today include examples from the fleets of Eastbourne Corporation, Brighton and Hove, Southdown Motor Services, Maidstone & District, East Kent plus visiting London Transport Central and Country area vehicles.
The services operated this year include the ever popular services to Beachy Head and Birling Gap, with services to Bexhill, Pevensey, Hailsham and the seafront service from Holywell to Princes Park. A variety of vehicles will be utilised including a number of 'open toppers'.
A Short History
For those who are new to the event, the first running day was held in 2006.
Eastbourne has a unique place in the history of public transport. In 1903 it was empowered by Parliament through the Eastboure Corporation Act to own and operate motor buses within and 1 mile beyond the borough boundary.
On 12* April 1903 a service between the Station and the Meads was launched with the Corporation's first vehicle, a 14-seat Milnes Daimler. Eastbourne thereby became being the first municipality in the world to operate a motor bus service.
This was a start of operations that was to last for over a century with Eastbourne celebrating 100 years the motor bus in 2003 that included a special display and rally featuring preserved Eastbourne as well as contemporary vehicles.
This event proved to be the Company's swansong. In 2008 Stagecoach, one of the UK's biggest bus operators took over the ownership of Eastbourne Buses closing the era of municipal operated bus services.
Filmed on: 07/07/2024