Original company Wilts & Dorset Motor Services Limited was incorporated in 1915, with its head office in
Amesbury, Wiltshire, moving to
Salisbury in 1917. The company's first route was between Salisbury and Amesbury. The company grew rapidly in the
Andover, Amesbury,
Blandford Forum,
Pewsey and Salisbury areas; despite the name, the company's operations were mainly in the southern part of
Wiltshire and the northern part of
Hampshire. The
Southern Railway and
Thomas Tilling obtained shares in 1931, with Wilts & Dorset being nationalised in 1948. It acquired Venture of
Basingstoke in 1950, in a reorganisation following the nationalisation of Venture's parent,
Red & White, and acquired
Silver Star of
Porton Down, Wiltshire in May 1963. In 1963, the management of Wilts & Dorset passed to
Hants & Dorset, a neighbouring state-owned bus company. In 1969, both companies became part of the
National Bus Company (NBC) and, in October 1972, both companies were merged under the
Hants & Dorset name, with the
Wilts & Dorset name ceasing to be used.
Re-establishment and privatisation The
Transport Act 1985 led to the privatisation of the NBC, and in preparation for
deregulation taking effect on 26 October 1986, Hants & Dorset was split into three operating companies in April 1983, one of which was the Wilts & Dorset Bus Company. The new Wilts & Dorset company's operating area was considerably larger than its older namesake, including
Swanage,
Poole,
Bournemouth,
Lymington,
Devizes,
Swindon and
Salisbury, but not
Basingstoke. Depots were located in
Blandford Forum, Lymington,
Pewsey, Poole,
Ringwood, Salisbury and Swanage. beating a rival bid for the takeover of the company by
Badger Vectis, a short-lived consortium between former NBC subsidiaries
Badgerline and
Isle of Wight bus operator
Southern Vectis; following the buyout,
bus wars endured between Wilts & Dorset and Badgerline within Salisbury. Damory Coaches of
Blandford Forum was purchased in May 1993, followed by Oakfield Travel and Stanbridge & Crichel Bus Company in November 1993, and by Blandford Bus Company in January 1994; all were combined under the
Damory Coaches name.
Tourist Coaches was also purchased by Wilts & Dorset during the 1990s, Independents coach company Levers and
Thamesdown Transport coaching arm Kingston Coaches were purchased and consolidated under the
Tourist Coaches name; independent Bell's Coaches was later added in 2003.
Go-Ahead Group ownership in
Southampton in September 2008 On 11 August 2003, Wilts & Dorset was sold to the
Go-Ahead Group for £31.6 million (). On 31 July 2008, a Wilts & Dorset
open-top bus collided with two cars between
Studland and the local chain ferry, injuring 30 people. The bus, a route 50 service travelling from Swanage to Bournemouth, collided with both a
Volkswagen Golf and a
Porsche; the latter was driving away from the chain ferry on Ferry Road and crashed head on with the bus and the other car. A number of passengers reported the bus travelled a distance on two wheels and the eventual toppling took place at low speed. The top-deck passengers were all thrown off onto soft ground in a ditch and six passengers were taken to
Poole Hospital with minor injuries. The driver of the Porsche was later convicted of
driving without due care and attention. In 2011, Wilts & Dorset trialled Go-Ahead Group's
The Key smartcard ticketing system similar to London's
Oyster card and the
ITSO ticket used on
National Rail services; the system was already in use by sister companies
Brighton and Hove and
Metrobus. In 2012, it was launched across the entire network, with passengers able to save up to 33% against purchasing paper tickets. In July 2012, it was announced that the
Wilts & Dorset name would be dropped from bus services in favour of the
Morebus brand in Poole and Bournemouth, and
Salisbury Reds in Salisbury and Amesbury, both managed as part of the
Go South Coast operating company. In 2014, it was announced that the
bus station on Endless Street in Salisbury would close in favour of town centre stops. The station had opened in 1939 as the headquarters of Wilts & Dorset. == Operations ==